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THE  LIBRARY 
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THE  UNIVERSITY 

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BREAKING  INTO 
THE  MOVIES 


Digitized  by  tine  Internet  Arciiive 

in  2007  witii  funding  from 

IVIicrosoft  Corporation 


http://www.arGliive.org/details/breakingintomoviOOemeriala 


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BREAKING   INTO 
THE  MOVIES 

by 

JOHN  EMERSON 

and 

ANITA   LOOS 

Authors  of  "How  To  Write  Photoplays** 


ILLUSTRATED 


THE  JAMES  A.  McCANN  COMPANY 

Publishers  NEW  YORK 


Copyright,  1921  by 
THE  JAMES  A.  McCANN  COMPANY 

All  Riffhti  Reserved 


PRINTED  IN  THB  U.  S.  A. 


College 
,  Librcu'v 


CONTENTS 

CHAPTER  PAGE 

I     Introduction 1 

II    What  the  Jobs  Are 5 

III  Acting  for  the  Screen 9 

IV  Would  You  Film  Well? 12 

V    Make-Up 17 

VI    How  to  Dress  for  a  Picture   ....  22 

VII    Movie  Manners 26 

VIII    Reading  Your  Part 29 

IX    Inside  the  Brain  of  a  Movie  Star    .     .  33 

X    Salaries  in  the  Movies 38 

XI     Scenarios 41 

XII    How  Others  Have  Done  It    ....  44 

XIII    Amateur  Movie  Making 49 

Introductory  Note  to  Part  II    .     .     .  53 

Red  Hot  Romance   .......  55 


1426638 


ILLUSTRATIONS 

Casting  the  Picture   Frontispiece 

facing  page 

Rehearsing  the  Company 10 

Rouging  the  Lips  for  the  Camera 18 

Making  up  the  Eyes 22 

Glueing  on  a  Crepe  Mustache  34 

Testing  Make-Up  and  Expression   42 

Making  a  "Close-Up"     50 


BREAKING  INTO 
THE  MOVIES 


Breaking  Into  the  Movies 


CHAPTER  I 

INTRODUCTION 

Were  the  average  man  suddenly  called  upon  to 
assemble  all  the  women  in  his  town  who  looked  like 
Mary  Pickford,  he  might  find  himself  at  a  loss  as  to 
how  to  commence.  In  fact,  he  might  even  doubt  that 
there  were  sufficient  persons  answering  this  descrip- 
tion to  warrant  such  a  campaign. 

We  know  a  way  to  get  them  all  together  on  twenty- 
four  hours'  notice.  Just  insert  a  small  advertisement 
in  the  local  newspaper,  reading: 

"Wanted  for  the  movies — a  girl  who  looks  like  Mary 
Pickford — apply  at  such-and-such  a  studio  to-morrow 
morning," 

We  guarantee  that  not  only  will  every  woman  who 
looks  like  Mary  Pickford  be  on  the  spot  at  sunrise,  but 
that  a  large  preponderance  of  the  entire  female  popu- 
lation will  drop  in  during  the  morning.  For  it  is  a 
puzzling  but  indisputable  fact  that  everybody  wants  to 
break  into  the  movies. 

The  curious  part  of  it  all  is  that  the  movies  really 
need  these  people. 

On  the  one  hand  are  countless  men  and  women  be- 
sieging the   studio   doors   in   the   hope  of    starting  a 

1 


2  BREAKING  INTO  THE  MOVIES 

career  in  any  one  of  a  thousand  capacities,  from  actress 
to  scenario  writer,  from  director  to  cameraman.  There 
are  people  with  plots,  people  with  inventions,  people 
with  new  ideas  of  every  conceivable  variety,  all  clamor- 
ing for  admission.  And,  on  the  other  hand,  there  are 
the  men  who  manage  the  movies  sending  out  all  manner 
of  exhortations,  appeals  and  supplications  to  just  such 
people  to  come  and  work  in  their  studios.  They  drown 
each  other's  voices,  the  one  calling  for  new  talent 
and  new  types,  the  many  for  a  chance  to  demonstrate 
that  they  are  just  the  talent  and  types  that  are  so  in 
demand. 

This  economic  paradox,  this  passing  in  the  night 
of  Demand  and  Supply,  has  come  about  through  a  gen- 
eral misconception  of  everything  concerned  with  the 
movies. 

The  first  to  be  in  the  wrong  were  the  producers. 
They  built  up  an  industry  which,  in  its  early  days, 
was  vitally  dependent  upon  individual  personalities.  A 
picture,  according  to  their  views,  was  made  or  unmade 
by  a  single  star  or  director  or  writer,  and  very  naturally 
they  were  loath  to  entrust  the  fate  of  a  hundred  thou- 
sand dollar  investment  to  untried  hands.  While  on  the 
one  hand  they  realized  the  pressing  need  for  new  blood 
in  their  industry,  they  were,  nevertheless,  very  wary 
of  being  the  first  to  welcome  the  newcomer.  Producers 
preferred  to  pay  twenty  times  the  price  to  experienced 
professionals,  no  matter  how  mediocre  their  work 
might  have  been  in  the  past,  than  to  take  a  chance  on 
a  promising  beginner.  The  business  side  of  the  movies, 
has,  in  the  past,  been  nothing  more  nor  less  than  a 
tremendous  gamble  wherein  the  men  who  had  staked 
their  fortunes  on  a  single  photoplay  walked  about  in 


INTR^     /oc.ii3N  3 

fear  of  their  very  shadows — desiring  new  ideas,  yet 
afraid  to  risk  testing  them,  calling;  for  new  artists  yet 
fearing  to  give  them  the  opportt  |ty  to  break  in.  The 
very  nature  of  the  industry  w^  responsible  for  this 
situation  and,  to  a  large  extenti  it  is  a  condition  which 
still  prevails  in  a  majority  of  tne  smaller  studios.  The 
greatest  obstacle  which  every  peginner  must  surmount 
is  the  one  which  first  confror^s  him — the  privilege  of 
doing  his  first  picture — ^the  fiifet  chance. 

The  larger  companies,  however,  in  the  last  year 
or  so  have  awakened  to  the  ^ct  that  by  excluding  be- 
ginners they  have  themselves  raised  the  cost  of  motion 
picture  production  many  times.  They  have  found 
themselves  with  a  very  limited  number  of  stars  and 
directors  and  writers  and  technical  men  to  choose  from, 
all  of  whom,  for  this  very  reason,  could  demand 
enormous  salaries.  One  by  one  these  companies  are 
instituting  various  systems  for  the  encouragement  of 
embryo  talent.  Now,  if  ever,  is  the  time  to  break 
into  the  movies. 

But  much  more  to  blame  for  the  general  mix-up  in 
the  movies  are  the  beginners  themselves.  In  the  ma- 
jority of  cases  they  state  in  loud,  penetrating  accents 
that  they  desire  to  break  into  the  movies,  here  and 
now ;  but  when  questioned  as  to  the  exact  capacity  in 
which  they  desire  to  accomplish  this  ambition,  they 
appear  to  be  a  bit  hazy.  Anything  with  a  large  salary 
and  short  hours  will  do,  they  say.  The  organization 
of  the  business  and  the  sordid  details  connected  with 
the  various  highly  specialized  jobs  in  the  studios  con- 
cern them  not  at  all.  They  let  it  go  with  an  unqualified 
statement  that  they  want  to  break  in  the  worst  way — 
and  generally  they  do. 


4  BREAKINCp^'-rO  THE  MOVIES 

Now  making  movicj  is  not  child's  play.  It  is  a  pro- 
fession— or  rathe  a  combination  of  professions — 
which  takes  time  id  thought  and  study.  True,  there 
are  fortunes  to  tit  made  for  those  who  will  seriously 
enter  this  field  ?nd  study  their  work  as  they  would 
study  for  any  uther  profession.  But  unfortunately, 
most  of  those  who  head  towards  the  cinema  studios 
do  not  take  time  to  learn  the  facts  about  the  industry. 
They  do  not  look  c  'er  the  multitude  of  different  highly 
specialized  positio  which  the  movies  offer  and  ask 
themselves  for  wh  one  they  are  best  suited.  They 
just  plunge  in,  so  inter t  upon  making  money  at  the 
moment  that  they  give  nc- thought  at  all  to  the  future. 

Therefore,  in  writing  this  series,  we  shall  start 
with  an  old  saw — a  warning  to  amateurs  to  look  be- 
fore they  leap.  No  industry  in  the  world  presents  so 
many  angles,  varying  from  technical  work  in  the  studio, 
to  the  complexities  of  high  finance.  If  you  really 
wish  to  break  into  the  movies,  go  to  the  studios  and 
see  for  yourself  what  you  are  fitted  for.  Perhaps  you 
think  you  are  an  actor,  and  are  really  a  first  rate 
scenarioist.  Perhaps  you  have  an  ambition  to  plan  scen- 
ery, and  instead  find  that  your  forte  lies  in  the  busi- 
ness office.  Men  who  started  as  cameramen  are  now 
directors.  Men  who  started  as  directors  have  ended 
as  highly  successful  advertising  managers.  So  there 
you  are.  You  pay  your  money — and — if  you  are  wise 
— you  take  your  choice. 


CHAPTER  II 

WHAT  THE  JOBS  ARE 

Most  people  seem  to  think  there  are  concerned  in 
the  making  of  motion  pictures  just  four  classes  of  peo- 
ple— actors,  scenario  writers,  directors  and  cameramen. 
It  all  seems  very  simple.  The  scenario  writer  sits  down 
in  the  morning  and  works  out  a  scene;  he  wakes  up 
the  director,  who  packs  some  actors  and  a  cameraman 
in  an  automobile,  together  with  a  picnic  lunch,  and 
goes  out  to  make  the  picture  on  some  lovely  hillside. 
Then,  having  finished  the  photoplay,  they  take  it 
around  to  your  local  theater  and  exhibit  it  at  twenty- 
five  cents  a  seat. 

As  a  matter  of  fact,  the  movies,  now  the  fifth  na- 
tional industry  in  the  United  States,  has  as  many 
phases,  and  as  many  complexities  as  any  other  industry 
in  the  world. 

Broadly  speaking,  the  movies  are  made  up  of  alli- 
ances between  producing  companies  and  distributing 
companies.  For  example,  the  Constance  Talmadge 
Corporation  produces  the  photoplays  in  which  Miss 
Talmadge  is  starred,  and  this  Company  is  allied  with 
the  First  National  Exhibitors  Circuit  which  takes  the 
completed  film  and  sells  it  to  theater  managers  in  every 
part  of  the  world.  The  ConstanceTalmadge  Corpora- 
tion's duty  is  to  make  a  photoplay  and  deliver  it  to  the 
First  National  Exhibitors  Circuit ;  the  latter  company 

5 


6  BREAKING  INTO  THE  MOVIES 

duplicates  the  film  in  hundreds  of  "prints,"  advertises 
it,  rents  it  to  exhibitors,  and  sees  to  the  delivery  of  the 
film.  In  the  same  way,  Nazimova  makes  comedies  and 
releases  them  through  the  Metro  Corporation,  her  dis- 
tributor. 

The  great  distributing  companies  employ  the  sales- 
men, advertising  experts,  business  men,  and  so  forth. 
All  the  technical  work  concerned  with  the  making  of 
the  picture,  however,  is  in  the  hands  of  the  producing 
company,  and,  since  we  are  engaged  in  such  work  our- 
selves, it  is  about  these  posts  that  we  must  talk. 

If  we  are  to  take  the  studio  jobs  in  their  natural 
order,  the  first  to  begin  work  on  a  picture  is,  of  course, 
the  author.  Each  studio  employs  a  scenario  editor 
who  is  on  the  lookout  for  good  magazine  stories  or 
plays  or  original  scripts.  He  himself  is  not  so  much 
a  writer  as  an  analyst,  who  knows  what  kind  of  stories 
his  public  wants ;  generally  he  is  an  old  newspaperman 
or  an  ex-magazine  editor.  Having  bought  the  story, 
he  turns  it  over  to  a  scenarioist — the  "continuity 
writer."  This  type  of  specialist  is  much  in  demand, 
since  no  story  can  survive  a  badly  constructed  scenario. 

The  scenario  writer  puts  the  story  into  picture  form 
exactly  as  a  dramatist  may  put  a  novel  into  play  form 
for  the  stage.  It  is  the  scenarioist  or  continuity  writer 
who  really  gives  to  the  story  its  screen  value — hence 
the  very  large  prices  paid  for  this  work  when  it  is  well 
done.  Next  in  line  is  the  director,  who  takes  the 
scenario  and  sets  out  to  make  the  picture. 

There  is  a  shortage  of  directors  at  present,  and  for 
that  reason,  salaries  are  particularly  high  in  this  line, 
but  of  course,  direction  is  a  profession  which  takes 
many  years  of  study. 


WHAT  THE  JOBS  ARE  7 

In  beginning  work  on  his  picture,  the  director  first 
consults  the  studio  manager,  who  is  really  the  head  of 
the  employment  office.  The  studio  manager  consults 
with  him  as  to  the  expenses  of  the  scenery  and  the 
length  of  time  to  be  spent  in  making  the  picture  and 
then  summons  the  technical  staff. 

The  technical  staff  of  a  studio  is  a  rather  large  as- 
sembly. There  is  the  art  director,  who  plans  the  scen- 
ery, the  technical  man  who  directs  the  building,  the 
casting  director,  who  selects  the  actors,  the  electrician, 
who  assists  in  working  out  the  lighting  effects,  the 
laboratory  superintendent,  who  must  supervise  the  de- 
veloping of  the  film,  the  cutters,  who  assemble  the  com- 
pleted film,  and  last,  but  not  least,  the  cameraman. 
Of  course  there  are  hundreds  of  minor  posts — assistant 
director,  assistant  cameraman,  property  man,  research 
experts,  location  seekers,  and  so  forth. 

The  casting  director  immediately  sends  out  a  call 
for  the  "types"  demanded  in  the  scenario.  H  possible, 
he  notifies  the  actors  and  actresses  personally,  but  more 
often  he  is  forced  to  get  in  touch  with  them  through 
the  numerous  agencies  which  act  as  brokers  in  "types.'^ 
The  Actors'  Equity  Association  is  now  doing  excellent 
work  in  supplying  actors  for  pictures  at  the  lowest  pos- 
sible cost  to  the  actor  in  the  way  of  commissions.  Pres- 
ently a  large  number  of  actors  and  actresses  appear 
at  the  studio  and  the  casting  director  selects  from  them 
the  individuals  best  suited  to  the  coming  production. 
Beginners  are  warned  against  grafting  agents  who  on 
any  pretense  whatever  charge  more  than  the  legal  5% 
commission.  They  are  also  warned  against  signing 
"exclusion"  contracts  with  any  agent,  as  this  frequently 
compels  the  actor  to  pay  double  commissions. 


8  BREAKING  INTO  THE  MOVIES 

Meanwhile  the  art  director  has  built  his  scenery,  and 
the  picture  goes  "into  production."  At  the  end  of  some 
six  weeks  or  two  months,  the  directors  turn  the  com- 
pleted film  over  to  the  assemlHing  and  cutting  depart- 
ment. As  a  rule  both  the  director  and  the  scenario 
writer  work  with  the  assembler  and  cutter,  and  if  they 
are  wise,  they  insist  on  doing  the  cutting  themselves, 
for  the  success  of  the  picture  depends  largely  upon  this 
important  operation  of  assembly.  At  the  same  time, 
another  specialist  designs  and  works  out  the  illustra- 
tions on  the  borders  of  the  written  inserts.  Finally  the 
assembled  picture  is  shown  to  the  studio  staff,  and  if 
they  are  satisfied,  the  negative  is  forwarded  to  the  dis- 
tributing company.  The  studio's  work  on  that  picture 
is  ended. 

From  this  brief  survey,  you  can  see  that  the  ave- 
nues for  breaking  into  the  movies  are  almost  unlimited. 
You  can  be  an  actor,  director,  cameraman,  scene  builder, 
cutter,  titler,  scenario  writer,  or  anything  else  if  you 
will  begin  at  the  bottom  and  learn  the  game.  All  of 
these  positions  are  highly  paid  and  all  require  a  high 
knowledge  of  motion  picture  technique. 

The  important  thing  is  to  start — ^to  get  into  the 
studio,  in  any  capacity.  Then  choose  the  type  of  work 
in  which  you  desire  to  rise,  and  learn  it.  Everybody 
will  help  you  and  encourage  you  if  you  start  this  way, 
instead  of  trying  the  more  common  but  less  successful 
method  of  starting  at  the  top  and  working  down. 


CHAPTER  III 


ACTING   FOR   THE   SCREEN 


In  New  York  resides  a  dramatic  critic,  now  on  the 
staff  of  a  great  newspaper,  who  has  his  own  ideas 
about  movie  acting.  The  idea  in  question  is  that  there 
is  no  such  thing  as  movie  acting — and  the  gentleman 
carries  it  out  by  refusing  to  allow  the  word  "acting" 
to  be  printed  in  any  of  the  notices  and  reviews  in  his 
newspaper.  When  he  wishes  to  convey  the  thought 
that  such  and  such  a  star  acted  in  such  and  such  a 
picture  he  says,  "Miss  So-and-So  posed  before  the 
camera  in  the  motion  picture." 

Now  this  critic  is  a  good  critic,  as  critics  go,  but 
he  would  be  improved  physically  and  mentally  by  a  set 
of  those  monkey  glands  which  the  medicos  are  so  suc- 
cessfully grafting  upon  various  ossified  personalities. 
Anyone  who  thinks  that  there  is  no  such  thing  as 
motion  picture  acting  is  probably  still  wondering 
whether  the  Germans  will  win  the  war.  Motion  pic- 
ture acting  is  a  highly  developed  art,  with  a  technique 
quite  as  involved  as  that  of  the  legitimate  stage. 

The  fundamental  principle  to  remember  in  under- 
'vaking  screen  acting  is  that  the  camera  demands  far 
greater  realism  on  the  part  of  the  actor  than  the  eyes 
of  an  audience.  An  actor  in  the  spoken  drama  nearly 
always  overplays  or  underplays  his  part.  If  he  recited 
the  same  lines  in  the  same  tone  with  the  same  gestures 

9 


10         BREAKING  INTO  THE  MOVIES 

in  real  life,  he  would  appear  to  be  just  a  little  bit 
spiffy,  as  they  say  in  English  drinking  circles.  On  the 
stage  it  is  necessary  to  overdraw  the  character  in  order 
to  convey  a  realistic  impression  to  the  audience ;  exact 
naturalism  on  the  stage  would  appear  as  unreal  as  an 
unrouged  face  under  a  spotlight. 

The  camera,  however,  demands  absolute  realism. 
Actors  must  act  as  naturally  and  as  leisurely  as  they 
would  in  their  own  homes.  Their  expressions  must 
be  no  more  pronounced  than  they  would  be  in  real 
life.  Above  all,  they  must  be  absolutely  unconscious 
of  the  existence  of  the  camera. 

Any  deviation  from  this  course  leads  to  the  most 
mortifying  results  on  the  screen.  The  face,  enlarged 
many  times  life  size,  becomes  clearly  that  of  an  actor, 
rather  than  a  real  character.  The  assumed  expression 
of  hate  or  fear  which  would  seem  so  natural  on  the 
stage  is  merely  grotesque  in  the  film.  Unless  the 
actor  is  really  thinking  the  things  he  is  trying  to  por- 
tray on  the  screen,  the  audience  becomes  instantly 
aware  that  something  is  wrong. 

In  the  same  way  the  camera  picks  up  and  accen- 
tuates every  motion  on  the  part  of  the  actor.  An  un- 
necessary gesture  is  not  noticed  on  the  stage.  On  the 
screen,  enlarged  many  times,  it  is  instantly  noted. 

The  two  most  important  rules  to  follow,  then,  in 
motion  picture  acting  are:  act  as  you  would  under 
the  same  circumstances  in  real  life,  and  eliminate  all 
movement  and  gesture  which  does  not  bear  on  the 
scene.  It  is  better  not  to  move  at  all  than  to  make  a 
false  move. 

Beginners  must  adjust  their  walk  to  the  camera. 
tThere  is  no  rule  for  this,  however,  as  every  individ- 


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ACTING  FOR  THE  SCREEN  11 

ual's  way  of  standing  and  walking  is  different.  Only- 
through  repeated  tests  can*  the  beginner  discover  and 
correct  the  defects  which  are  sure  to  appear  in  his 
physical  pose  the  first  time  he  acts  before  a  camera. 

Often  in  making  a  picture,  the  director  will  instruct 
his  cast  to  "speed  up"  or  "slow  down"  their  scene. 
Sometimes,  also,  he  will  alter  the  tempo  of  the  scene 
by  slowing  down  or  speeding  up  the  rate  at  which  the 
camera  is  being  cranked.  Beginners  must  follow  such 
instructions  to  the  letter,  for  the  timing  of  a  scene  is 
a  vitally  important  part  of  picture  production  and  a 
duty  which  is  entirely  in  the  hands  of  the  director. 

The  best  way  to  learn  the  principles  of  motion  pic- 
ture acting  is  to  watch  the  making  of  as  many  scenes 
as  possible  before  attempting  to  act  one.  Most  of  the 
stars  of  to-day  learned  their*  art  by  watching  the  efforts 
of  others  before  the  camera.  Only  by  constant  ob- 
servation in  the  studio  and,  more  important,  in  real 
life,  where  the  actions  and  reactions  of  real  people 
can  be  noted,  can  an  actor  hope  to  become  proficient. 


CHAPTER  IV 

WOULD   YOU   FILM    WELL? 

Probably  the  number  of  people  who  have  not  at 
one  time  or  another  wondered  in  a  sneaking  sort  of 
way  if  they  wouldn't  look  pretty  well  on  the  screen 
is  limited  to  the  aborigines  of  Africa.  And,  believe 
it  or  not,  two  of  the  aborigines  themselves  applied 
at  our  studio  for  jobs  not  long  ago.  They  had  acted 
in  several  travelogue  pictures,  taken  in  darkest  Africa, 
had  traveled  as  porters  with  the  company  to  the  coast, 
and  had  finally  become  so  enamored  of  the  work  that 
they  "beat"  their  way  all  the  way  to  America,  with  an 
English  vocabulary  limited  to  about  fifty  words, 
twenty-five  of  which  were  highly  profane.  It  just  goes 
to  show  that  we  are  all  human.  Needless  to  say,  both 
beauty  and  character  are  the  characteristics  in  demand 
in  the  films,  as  everywhere  else.  The  curious  fact  is 
that  faces  which  in  real  life  possess  great  beauty  or 
deep  character,  frequently  fail  to  carry  this  across  to 
the  camera. 

The  chief  reason  for  this  lies  in  the  fact  that  the 
camera  does  not  accept  color  values,  and  at  the  same 
time  accentuates  many  defects  which  are  ordinarily 
imperceptible  to  the  eye.  For  example,  a  wonderful 
type  of  Italian  beauty  appeared  at  our  studio  while 
we  were  casting  "Mama's  Affair"  for  Constance  Tal- 

12 


WOULD  YOU  FILM  WELL?  13 

madge.  She  had  never  before  appeared  in  motion 
pictures,  and  our  casting  director  was  quick  to  seize 
the  opportunity  to  make  a  test  of  her  face.  When 
the  picture  was  shown,  her  extraordinarily  fine  color- 
ing of  course  went  for  nothing,  and  her  beauty  was 
entirely  marred  by  the  inexplicable  appearance  of  a 
fine  down  over  her  upper  lip  and  a  large  mole  on  her 
left  temple.  Both  the  mole  and  the  down  had  been 
entirely  unnoticed  in  daylight,  but  under  the  fierce 
mercury  lights  of  the  studio  and  the  enlarging  lenses 
they  made  her  face  grotesque.  At  another  time  we 
attempted  to  make  a  leading  man  of  a  famous  war 
hero.  This  boy  had  been  a  college  athlete  and  had 
subsequently  distinguished  himself  as  a  bayonet  fighter 
on  four  battlefields.  When  his  test  films  were  pro- 
jected, to  the  astonishment  of  everyone  he  appeared  as 
an  anaemic,  effeminate  stripling,  whose  every  gesture 
aroused  the  ridicule  of  the  audience. 

The  skin  of  the  face  must  be  entirely  smooth  and 
unbroken.  The  slightest  eruption  or  blemish  is  visi- 
ble on  the  screen,  especially  in  this  day  when  "close- 
ups"  are  the  vogue.     The  teeth  must  be  perfect. 

Considerations  which  do  not  matter  in  the  slightest 
degree  in  facial  beauty  on  the  screen  are  those  of 
coloring  and  of  fineness  of  the  features.  The  pinker 
a  woman's  cheeks  may  be,  the  hollower  they  appear 
to  the  camera,  for  red  photographs  as  black,  and  a 
face  which  is  beautiful,  but  coarse  in  its  outline,  fre- 
quently photographs  quite  as  well  as  the  beautiful  face 
which  is  exquisite  in  every  detail. 

A  screen  star  sIiouM  be  equally  beautiful  in  every 
expression  and  from  every  angle.  This  is  not  so  true 
of  the  stage  star,  for  when  she  is  moving  about,  speak- 


14  BREAKING  INTO  THE  MOVIES 

ing  and  gesticulating,  the  question  of  her  beauty  be- 
comes comparatively  unimportant.  On  the  screen, 
however,  important  scenes  are  always  taken  in  "close- 
ups"  wherein  the  star,  whether  portraying  rage  or 
pain,  love  or  hate,  must  be  equally  charming,  at  the 
risk  of  making  a  permanently  bad  impression  upon 
her  audience. 

Many  people  who  are  beautiful  when  seen  in  "full 
face"  are  most  unattractive  in  profile.  In  fact,  the 
matter  narrows  down  still  further,  for  quite  often 
those  who  have  a  lovely  profile  are,  for  some  inexplica- 
ble reason,  gross  and  unattractive  when  the  face  is 
turned  to  show  three-quarters.  A  number  of  the 
present  movie  stars  have  risen  to  the  top  despite  such 
impediments  by  stipulating  in  all  their  contracts  that 
they  be  never  shown  in  close-up  in  the  pose  in  which 
they  are  unattractive.  One  star  in  particular  never 
shows  the  left  side  of  her  face  for  this  reason.  This, 
however,  is  obviously  a  great  handicap. 

The  male  types  which  are  most  in  demand  are  not 
those  whose  appeal  is  through  physical  beauty.  Audi- 
ences are  sick  of  large-eyed,  romantic  heroes,  and  are 
demanding  a  little  manly  force  and  character  in  their 
heroes. 

To  film  well,  a  man's  head  should  be  large,  rugged, 
with  the  features  cut  in  masses,  like  a  Rodin  bust. 
Whether  he  is  attempting  to  play  "juveniles,"  "leads" 
or  "heavies"  his  face  must  possess  the  cardinal  requi- 
sites of  character.  Deep-set  eyes,  a  strong  chin,  a 
jutting  forehead,  a  prominent  nose,  are  all  desirable. 
Again,  the  high  cheekbones  and  long  face  appear  de- 
sirable characteristics.    William  S.  Hart's  success  de- 


WOULD  YOU  FILM  WELL?  15 

pends  largely  on  these  two  simple  characteristics  of 
facial  structure. 

Neither  in  men  nor  in  women  is  the  hair  an  essential 
for  screen  beauty.  Wigs  and  trick  arrangements  of 
the  hair  are  a  function  of  the  make-up  department, 
and  a  man  or  woman  with  no  hair  at  all  could  still 
be  made  to  appear  most  attractive  to  the  unsophisti- 
cated camera. 

In  analyzing  your  own  face,  then,  ask  yourself  the 
following  questions: 

Are  my  eyes  large? 

Is  my  skin  fine  and  well  kept? 

Is  my  mouth  small  and  are  my  teeth  good  ? 

Is  my  nose  straight? 

Has  my  face  character,  something  which  makes  it 
not  only  beautiful,  but  which  portrays  the  underlying 
personality  ? 

If  you  can  answer  these  questions  in  the  affirmative 
you  may  have  a  career  before  you  in  the  motion  pic- 
tures. If  you  cannot  answer  any  of  them  but  the  last 
in  the  affirmative,  you  may  still  be  successful  as  a 
movie  actor,  for  "types" — whether  of  gunmen  or  mil- 
lionaires, villains  or  saints — are  much  in  demand.  One 
man  has  made  himself  a  small  fortune  by  playing 
parts  in  which  a  particularly  villainous  expression 
were  required — such  as  dope  fiends.  Another  chap, 
in  the  Western  studios,  has  made  a  good  living 
for  years  by  acting  "stained  glass  saints,"  having 
been  equipped  by  nature  with  an  unusually  aesthetic 
expression. 

In  any  case,  if  you  are  to  essay  a  career  in  the 
movies,   remember   that   your   natural   characteristics 


16  BREAKING  INTO  THE  MOVIES 

are  all  that  count.  Tricks  of  rolling  the  eyes  or 
puckering  the  lips  or  setting  the  jaw  are  buncombe 
and  are  instantly  discovered  by  the  camera. 

Be  natural.    Keep  healthy  and  happy.    That,  in  the 
movies,  as  in  real  life,  is  the  way  to  charm  and  beauty. 


CHAPTER  V 


MAKE-UP 


Although  most  women  use  cosmetics  in  their  every- 
day life,  they  are  lamentably  ignorant  of  the  principles 
of  make-up.  For  example,  not  one  woman  in  a  hun- 
dred knows  that  she  should  never  rouge  her  face  until 
she  has  put  on  her  hat,  since  the  shadow  and  line  of 
the  hat  changes  the  whole  color  and  composition  of 
her  face.  The  average  man's  knowledge  of  the  sub- 
ject is  limited  to  the  use  of  powder  after  shaving. 
And  yet  thousands  of  men  and  women  secure  work 
in  the  mob  and  ensemble  scenes  in  the  movies  and 
find  themselves  expected  to  make  up  for  the  camera, 
the  most  difficult  task  of  all,  with  no  previous  instruc- 
tion whatsoever.  No  wonder  they  are  discouraged 
when  they  see  themselves  peering  out  from  the  crowd 
scene  with  a  face  they  hardly  recognize  themselves. 

Nevertheless,  almost  all  the  stars  of  to-day — Norma 
Talmadge,  Constance  Talmadge,  Mary  Pickford,  and 
dozens  of  others — have  risen  from  these  mob  scenes. 
Their  faces,  even  when  seen  among  hundreds  of 
others,  attracted  instant  attention.  Perhaps  it  was 
natural  beauty.  Perhaps,  too,  they  had,  by  accident  or 
design,  solved  at  the  start  the  great  problem  which 
confronts  all  movie  actors,  that  of  finding  the  correct 
make-up. 

Movie  make-up  strives  only  for  a  photographic 
17 


18  BREAKING  INTO  THE  MOVIES 

effect  and  has  no  relation  to  street  or  stage  make-up. 
Almost  every  face  contains  numerous  imperfections 
which  are  invisible  to  the  eye,  yet  which,  when  en- 
larged many  times  on  the  screen,  are  very  obvious. 
There  are  fundamental  rules  of  make-up,  but  the  only 
way  to  perfect  your  technique  is  by  constantly  view- 
ing your  own  "stills"  and  movies,  and  changing  your 
make-up  to  the  best  advantage. 

Red  photographs  black,  and  for  this  reason  rouge 
is  little  used  in  the  studios,  except  for  special  effects. 
Rouge  on  the  cheeks  gives  the  illusion  of  dark  shadows 
and  makes  the  face  look  hollow ;  it  deepens  the  eyes, 
and  is  sometimes  used  on  the  eyelids  for  this  reason. 
Light  carmen  may  be  used  on  the  lips. 

To  start  your  make-up  you  will  need  cold  cream, 
special  yellow  film  powder,  film  grease  paint,  and  a 
soft  towel.  Massage  your  face  with  cold  cream  and 
then  remove  it  with  the  towel,  so  that  the  surface  is 
absolutely  clean.  Then  apply  your  grease  paint  with 
the  fingers,  and  cover  every  bit  of  the  face  from  the 
collar-line  to  the  hair. 

When  you  have  a  smooth,  even  surface  of  grease 
paint,  spread  special  film  powder  upon  it  and  pat  it  in 
lightly  with  a  powder  puff.  There  are  a  number  of 
shades  of  grease  paint  and  by  changing  the  grease 
tint  before  applying  the  powder  you  can  darken  or 
lighten  your  complexion  in  accordance  with  your  part. 
Before  going  further,  make  sure  there  are  no  blotches 
on  your  make-up's  surface  and  that  the  grease  has 
left  no  sheen. 

The  eyes  are  the  most  important  and  expressive  fea- 
tures. The  make-up  which  relates  to  them  is  all  im- 
portant.    First  you  must  ascertain  by  actual  test  the 


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MAKE-UP  19 

correct  color  with  which  to  line  your  eyes.  Almost 
every  color  is  used,  for  the  effect  seems  to  vary  with 
different  faces.  Black,  blue,  green,  brown  and  red  are 
all  used  in  varying  proportions  and  mixtures  by  differ- 
ent actors.  Naturally,  you  should  try  to  find  the  color 
which  makes  your  eyes  look  deepest  and  most 
luminous. 

The  edge  of  the  upper  eyelid  is  clearly  lined.  Then 
the  shade  is  worked  back  toward  the  eyebrow,  getting 
constantly  lighter,  until  it  finally  blends  with  the  grease 
paint  of  the  face.  The  process  is  reversed  for  the 
lower  lid,  which  is  darkest  at  the  edge  and  grows 
lighter  as  you  work  down. 

Your  eyelids  should  be  lined  with  black  cosmetic. 
Do  not  bead  them.  This  shows  clearly  in  close-ups 
and  looks  rather  ridiculous.  The  slapstick  comedy 
people  sometimes  use  beaded  eyelids  to  burlesque  the 
"baby-doll"  expression. 

The  corners  of  the  eyes  are  shadowed  with  brown 
or  red.  It  is  this  shadowing  that  gives  most  of  the 
character  to  the  eyes ;  but  at  the  same  time  it  is  apt 
to  age  the  whole  face.  For  this  reason  it  must  be  done 
in  conjunction  with  actual  tests. 

Finally,  apply  light  carmen  to  your  lips  and  make 
sure  you  do  not  overdo  it. 

There  are  numerous  special  recipes  for  producing 
pallor,  scars,  bruises,  and  the  like.  Blackface  make-up 
is  done  most  successfully  with  charred  cork  dust  mixed 
with  water  to  produce  a  heavy  paste.  Tom  Wilson, 
the  best  known  player  of  negro  parts  in  the  movies, 
who  played  in  "The  Birth  of  a  Nation,"  and  more  re- 
cently in  our  own  special  production,  "Red  Hot  Ro- 
mance,"   advises    amateurs    to   use    this    recipe    and. 


20  BREAKING  INTO  THE  MOVIES 

further,  to  high-light  the  natural  lines  of  their  faces 
by  scraping  off  the  cork  with  a  sharp  stick,  wherever 
a  line  is  to  show,  and  letting  the  natural  white  of 
the  skin  appear. 

High-lighting  for  most  character  parts  is  a  special 
art.  Such  characters  as  Indian  faces  or  the  weather- 
beaten  and  wrinkled  countenance  of  an  old  sea  cap- 
tain may  be  done  in  brown  with  white  high-lights. 
You  should  ask  your  cameraman  to  help  you  with 
high-lighting,  as  it  is  very  difficult. 

There  are  tricks  of  make-up  which  alter  the  entire 
character  of  the  face.  For  example,  by  shading  the 
outline  of  the  face  with  red  you  can  make  it  appear 
much  thinner.  In  this  case  the  grease  paint  is  slightly 
reddened — or,  if  you  desire,  darkened — near  the  ear- 
line.  If  you  desire  to  make  your  face  rounder  and 
fuller  reverse  the  process  and  lighten  the  grease  paint 
at  its  outer  edge. 

If  your  eyebrows  and  hair  are  dark,  you  can  tinge 
them  gray  by  rubbing  the  hair  with  mascaro  and  then 
combing.  If  they  are  light,  white  and  black  grease 
paint,  applied  alternately  and  then  combed,  will  do 
the  trick.  Beards  and  bushy  eyebrows  are  made  of 
crepe  hair  and  glued  on  with  spirit  gum.  As  a  matter 
of  fact,  if  you  are  really  serious  about  making  a 
career  of  movie  acting,  it  is  best  to  grow,  so  far  as 
possible,  the  hirsute  appendages  required  in  your  parts. 
For  an  unshaven  tramp  or  a  Robinson  Crusoe  effect, 
for  example,  it  is  much  better  to  go  unshaven  for  a 
week  or  so  than  to  produce  a  false  effect  by  attempting 
to  imitate  the  real  thing  with  crepe  hair. 

Finally,  lest  you  be  left  in  the  position  of  the  man 
who    starts   his    first    ride    on    a    motorcycle   without 


MAKE-UP  21 

knowing  how  to  shut  the  power  off,  we  may  add  that 
all  this  nasty  mess  of  grease  paint  and  powder  and 
gum  and  hair  will  come  off  in  an  instant  when  cold 
cream  is  applied.  It  is  hard  to  feel  natural  in  make-up 
at  first;  but  presently  you  will  forget  that  you  have 
it  on  at  all. 

All  of  the  necessary  cosmetics  may  be  secured 
through  any  drug  store  or  theatrical  costumer.  If 
you  want  to  find  out  how  you  will  look  in  the  movies, 
it  is  not  necessary  to  have  a  film  test  made.  Just 
buy  some  make-up  and  have  someone  take  a  few 
"close-ups"  of  your  head  with  an  ordinary  camera. 
But  do  not  retouch  the  negatives — for  movies  are  not 
retouched,  you  know. 

Look  for  imperfections  of  every  sort  in  pose  and 
expression.  Then  try  to  find  a  make-up  which  will 
eradicate  them.  If  you  solve  your  make-up  problem 
before  you  go  to  the  studio  you  will  be  well  repaid. 
Among  the  dozens  of  flat,  uninteresting  countenances 
a  well  made-up  face  stands  out  and  attracts  the  atten- 
tion of  the  director  at  once. 


CHAPTER  VI 

HOW   TO  DRESS  FOR  A  PICTURE 

There  is  only  one  drawback  to  the  pleasurable  life 
of  the  movie  actor  or  actress.  They  draw  big  salaries ; 
they  get  their  names  in  the  papers  and  are  deluged 
with  "fan"  letters  to  such  an  extent  that  special  postal 
departments  are  installed  in  their  offices;  the  work  is 
interesting  and  the  hours  comparatively  short.  But, 
alas,  they  ha^e  to  have  a  lot  of  clothes. 

To  be  sure,  the  buying  of  clothes  is  a  most  pleasur- 
able experience  to  all  women  and  to  many  men.  And, 
forsooth,  if  they  draw  big  salaries,  why  cavil  about 
the  cost  of  replenishing  a  wardrobe  every  now  and 
again  ? 

The  fact  is,  the  wardrobes  are  not  replenished  every 
now  and  again;  they  are  constantly  in  a  state  of  re- 
plenishment, and  for  that  reason  the  average  actor's 
bank  account,  no  matter  how  big  the  salary,  is  also  in 
constant  need  of  being  similarly  replenished.  For 
every  new  scene  is  apt  to  require  completely  new 
gowns  and  suits,  and,  in  the  case  of  the  actors  who 
play  the  more  important  parts,  no  two  suits  or  gowns 
can  be  worn  in  any  two  pictures  or  the  fans  will  be 
sure  to  discover  it  and  write  uncomplimentary  letters 
to  the  studio. 

In  the  case  of  the  beginner,  however,  no  such  ex- 
penses need  be  met  if  he  or  she  has  one  complete 

22 


W    •a'S^ 


ii  > 


<u  t-  ° 


HOW  TO  DRESS  FOR  A  PICTURE       23 

wardrobe  to  start  with.  People  playing  minor  char- 
acters must  dress  for  the  part  at  their  own  expense, 
but  no  one  notices  or  cares  whether  they  wear  the 
same  clothes  with  which  they  recently  graced  the 
studio  next  door.  If  they  play  a  part  requiring  a  spe- 
cial dress  or  uniform  the  management  will  supply  it 
without  charge. 

It  is  rather  difficult  for  a  newcomer  to  the  movies 
to  know  exactly  what  clothes  are  required  for  their 
wardrobe.  Therefore  we  are  including  the  following 
comments  on  clothes  and  styles,  as  applied  to  motion 
picture  work: 

Men  should  have  at  least  three  business  suits,  one 
of  which  should  be  light  and  one  dark. 

For  summer  scenes,  white  flannels,  with  a  blue  coat 
and  a  soft  shirt — not  a  sport  shirt — are  required. 
White  duck  shoes  complete  this  outfit.  Tweed  suits 
are  the  proper  thing  for  wear  in  the  country  club 
scenes  and  in  most  pictures  calling  for  scenes  on  Eng- 
lish estates. 

For  dress  wear  three  outfits  are  necessary.  There  is 
the  cutaway  for  afternoon  weddings,  society  teas,  and 
so  forth,  a  Tuxedo  for  club  scenes  and  semi-dress  occa- 
sions, and  finally,  full  dress  for  balls  and  dinners  where 
ladies  are  in  the  scene.  A  dark  four-in-hand  or  bow 
tie,  with  a  stand-up  or  wing  collar,  should  be  worn 
with  the  cutaway,  and  regulation  dress  bow  ties,  black 
with  the  dinner  coat  and  white  with  the  dress  suit. 
These  clothes  are  an  essential  part  of  a  motion  picture 
actor's  outfit. 

The  great  difficulty  with  young  actors  is  a  tendency 
to  overdress  and  to  attempt  to  hide  bad  tailoring 
with  a  flashy  design  and  a  freak  cut  of  the  coat.    Since 


24  BREAKING  INTO  THE  MOVIES 

clothes  are  an  actor's  stock  in  trade,  he  should  patron- 
ize only  the  best,  if  the  most.expensive  tailors,  and  stick 
to  conservative  lines  unless  the  part  requires  eccentric 
dressing.  Jewelry  should  be  avoided,  unless  called 
for  in  the  character ;  cuff  links  and  a  watch  chain  are 
all  that  should  be  worn,  with  the  exception  of  dress 
studs  with  the  dinner  or  dress  coat. 

Girls  will  need  a  simple  afternoon  suit  and  an  outer 
coat  to  match.  They  must  have  two  summer  frocks, 
a  sailor  blouse  with  a  dark  skirt,  negligee,  and  an 
evening  gown  and  wraps.  Hats  to  match  are  neces- 
sary, of  course,  as  are  dancing  slippers  and  white  duck 
shoes. 

The  evening  gown  is  perhaps  the  most  important 
part  of  the  young  actress's  wardrobe,  since  she  is  more 
apt  to  be  called  in  for  ball  and  dinner  scenes  than 
any  other.  Simplicity  should  be  the  keynote  of  such 
gowns.  Simple  French  models  are  very  attractive,  but 
few  women  can  wear  them  well,  since  most  American 
girls  are  too  broad  in  the  shoulders  for  the  Parisian 
styles. 

Clothes  for  character  parts  must  be  assembled  on 
the  moment  according  to  the  demands  of  the  director 
and  the  imagination  of  the  actor  or  actress.  Realism 
is  the  great  essential  of  character  dressing.  To  wear 
the  rags  of  a  vaudeville  tramp  in  the  movies  would 
turn  the  picture  into  a  slapstick  comedy.  A  real 
tramp's  clothes  are  a  mighty  different  matter. 

The  greatest  difficulty  which  a  casting  director  ex- 
periences is  that  of  finding  people  to  play  the  part  of 
society  folk.  These  parts  require  an  understanding 
of  drawing-room  manners  and  ballroom  etiquette,  and 
the  ability  to  wear  smart  clothes.    If  the  clothes  are 


HOW  TO  DRESS  FOR  A  PICTURE       25 

not  up  to  the  moment  they  will  be  obsolete  when  the 
picture  reaches  the  country  at  large,  and  the  audiences 
will  think  that  because  the  styles  are  out  of  date  the 
picture  is  out  of  date  also.  Also  if  any  extreme 
styles  are  worn  they  are  sure  to  be  out  of  date  when 
the  picture  is  shown.  In  the  same  way,  the  slightest 
error  in  etiquette  is  sure  to  be  noted  and  commented 
upon.  It  is  more  of  a  trick  than  one  might  think 
to  know,  at  a  moment's  notice,  how  to  act  as  best  man 
at  a  fashionable  wedding,  or  how  to  serve  a  ten-course 
dinner  according  to  the  latest  vogue. 

The  best  way  is  to  dress  conservatively  and  to  act 
as  any  well  bred  person  might  be  expected  to.  A 
man  who  fails  to  take  off  his  hat  upon  entering  a 
fashionable  house  would  be  laughed  at.  A  man  who 
took  it  off  with  a  grand  flourish  would  be  hooted  out. 
Recently  a  director  read  in  a  certain  short  story  that 
the  Newport  set  had  instituted  the  custom  of  supply- 
ing a  single  green  glove  for  each  dinner  guest  to  wear 
while  the  olives  were  served.  This  was  merely  a  bit 
of  satire  on  the  part  of  the  story  writer — ^but  the 
director  took  it  seriously,  and  instituted  the  fad  in  a 
dinner  scene  with  dire  results  when  the  picture  was 
shown  to  the  newspaper  critics. 


CHAPTER  VII 


MOVIE   MANNERS 


This  chapter  does  not  deal  so  much  with  how  to 
act  in  a  picture  as  how  to  act  in  a  studio. 

Motion  picture  people  live,  more  or  less,  in  a  world 
of  their  own.  It  is  a  world  which  may  seem  a  hit  topsy 
turvy  to  the  outsider,  with  its  own  peculiar  customs, 
and  a  greater  freedom  from  restraint  than  is  cus- 
tomary in  the  conventional  Vv'orld  outside.  Examined 
a  bit  closer,  these  outlandish  ideas  appear  to  be  the 
very  same  ones  which  are  always  associated  with 
artists — a  bohemian  spirit  which  is  the  same  whether 
in  Hollywood  or  the  Latin  Quarter  of  Paris. 

If  the  newcomer  to  the  studio  wishes  to  establish 
himself  as  a  bona  fide  member  of  the  movie  world 
he  must  always  remember  that  no  matter  how  cynical 
they  may  seem,  no  matter  how  pessimistically  they 
may  talk,  these  people,  in  the  bottom  of  their  hearts, 
consider  a  photoplay  a  form  of  art  and  themselves  as 
artists.  The  actor  or  director  or  author  who  does 
really  good  work,  who  has  something  new  to  offer,  or 
who  at  least  is  sincere  in  his  desire  to  do  something 
big  and  fine  in  the  motion  pictures,  will  always  be 
tolerated  no  matter  how  bizarre  his  character  in  other 
respects.  In  short,  people  are  ranked  according  to 
their  artistic  understanding  rather  than  according  to 
their   ancestry,   their   bank   account   or  their  morals. 

26 


MOVIE  MANNERS  27 

Most  of  the  leaders  of  the  motion  picture  world  have 
risen  from  poverty  and  obscurity,  a  fact  which  ac- 
counts for  the  democracy  which  prevails  in  the  studio. 

There  are  a  few  rules  which  beginners  would  do 
well  to  follow.    Here  they  are : 

Be  modest.  Because  you  don't  understand  why 
something  is  done,  don't  believe  it  is  all  nonsense. 
And  remember  that  you  have  ever  so  much  to  learn 
about  the  business. 

Don't  criticize. 

Try  your  best  to  please  everyone,  particularly  the 
director,  whose  shoulders  are  carrying  the  responsi- 
bility for  the  whole  production  and  whose  manner  may 
be  a  bit  gruff — as  it  usually  is  when  a  man  is  laboring 
under  a  heavy  load. 

Don't  be  ashamed  of  being  in  the  movies.  If  you 
think  movies  are  a  low-brow  form  of  making  a  living 
your  associates  will  surely  become  aware  of  your 
state  of  mind  and  you  will  be  quietly  frozen  out. 

In  the  old  days  of  the  movies  social  status  in  the 
studio  was  determined  by  a  curious  system,  based 
upon  the  pay  envelope.  Actors — for  the  movie  world 
is  composed  for  the  greater  part  of  actors — are  classed 
as  stars,  the  "leads,"  the  "parts,"  the  "bits,"  the 
"extras"  and  "mobs."  The  star  is,  of  course,  the 
highly  paid  actor  or  actress  who  is  the  feature  of  the 
production;  the  "lead"  is  the  leading  man  or  woman 
who  plays  opposite  the  star;  the  "parts"  include  all 
those  characters  which  appear  on  the  program — the 
^^ minor  characters  of  the  play;  the  "bits"  are  those  who 
Nare  called  on  to  perform  a  bit  of  individual  action,  such 
as  the  butler  who  opens  the  door,  or  the  chauffeur 
who  drives  the  car,  but  who  have  no  real  part  in  the 


28         BREAKING  INTO  THE  MOVIES 

play;  the  extras  are  simply  members  of  the  crowd,  as 
the  ballroom  throng,  while  a  mob  is  just  a  mass  of 
people,  like  an  army  or  the  audience  at  a  football 
game. 

The  large  producing  companies  frequently  give  elab- 
orate dinners,  seating  three  or  four  hundred  people, 
and  under  this  ridiculous  old  system  the  star  sat  at 
the  head  of  the  table,  with  the  "leads"  near  at  hand. 
Then  came  the  "parts,"  then  the  "bits,"  and  finally, 
away  down  at  the  foot  of  the  table,  were  the  "extras." 
In  the  same  way  directors,  assistant  directors,  studio 
managers,  and  so  forth,  were  graded  down  according 
to  how  much  money  they  drew  from  the  cashier  every 
week. 

To-day  all  this  snobbery  has  passed  away.  The 
movie  world  has  its  smart  set  and  its  slums,  as  in  any 
other  world,  but  the  criterion  is  artistic  worth,  not 
money.  We  know  of  one  rather  unpleasant  personality 
who  has  risen  to  stardom,  but  is  completely  ignored 
by  the  lesser  lights  of  the  profession  despite  this  star's 
attempts  to  break  into  "film  society." 


CHAPTER  VIII 

READING   YOUR   PART 

On  the  legitimate  stage  actors  and  actresses  are 
called  on  to  read  their  parts  before  beginning  re- 
hearsals. In  the  movies  the  part  is  read  to  them. 
Before  the  company  begins  to  make  even  the  first 
scene  in  a  photoplay  the  scenario  writer  and  director 
call  a  meeting  and  rehearse  the  company,  reading 
the  scenario  and  explaining  the  meaning  of  each  scene. 
If  the  author  and  director  are  wise  the  story  is  then 
carefully  rehearsed  clear  through,  scene  by  scene, 
before  anything  is  photographed.  In  this  way  the 
actors  learn  the  sequence  of  their  scenes  and  the 
relation  of  their  parts  to  other  parts  and  to  the  whole. 

It  is  up  to  you  to  make  the  best  of  your  part. 
Secure  a  copy  of  the  scenario,  or  at  least  of  your  scenes, 
as  soon  as  possible.  Then  go  over  the  story  as  many 
times  as  possible,  trying  to  grasp  the  relationship  of 
your  own  character  to  that  of  the  other  characters  in 
the  story.    Work  out  your  own  conception  of  the  part. 

Perhaps  at  first  the  director  will  never  give  you  a 
chance  to  do  a  piece  of  original  acting.  He  will  work 
out  every  bit  of  action  for  you.  Eventually,  however, 
your  opportunity  will  come  to  "create  a  part,"  and  you 
must  be  ready  for  it. 

All  the  action  of  a  motion  picture  story  is  contained 
in  the  numbered  scenes  of  the  scenario.    Your  bit  of 

29 


30         BREAKING  INTO  THE  MOVIES 

acting  will  be  in  one  or  more  of  these  scenes.  Here 
is  a  sample  bit  of  one  of  our  own  scenarios,  based 
on  the  stage  play  "Mama's  Affair,"  which  we  recently 
wrote  for  Constance  Talmadge.  These  are  the  last 
few  scenes  of  the  photoplay : 

Eve  watches  her  mother  go  out,  then  turns  to 
the  doctor,  goes  to  him,  gives  him  her  hand,  and 
says  very  quietly: 

SP:   "GooD-BY,  Doctor." 

The  doctor  looks  at  her,  astonished,  and  says, 
"What  *"    Eve  looks  up  at  him  sternly  and  says : 

SP:  "Good-by;  I  Can  Hardly  Hope  to  See  You 
Again." 

She  then  starts  out  the  door.  The  doctor  hurries 
after  her,  stops  her,  and  says,  "What  do  you 
mean  ?"  Eve  turns  to  look  at  him,  and  then  says 
very  calmly : 

SP :  "I  Shall  Be  Leaving  To-Morrow.'' 

The  doctor,  taken  aback,  steps  back  a  couple  of 
steps,  looks  at  her  in  astonishment,  and  says : 

SP :  "I  Just  Told  You  That  I'd  Marry  You !"  >-^ 
Eve  looks  at  him  commiseratingly,  smiles  a  cyn- 
ical smile,  and  says : 

SP:  "You  Just  Told  Me  You  Would  Take  Me  in 
BECAUSE  You  See  No  Way  to  Prevent  My  Be- 
coming »  Chronic  Neurasthenic.'* 
The  doctor  looks  at  her,  flabbergasted  at  the 
plain  way  in  which  she  is  putting  things.  She 
then  goes  on  and  says : 

SP :   "You  Don't  Want  Me,  But  You'll  Take  Me 

IN  AS  You'd  Take  a  Patient  into  a  Hospital," 


READING  YOUR  PART  31 

The  doctor  looks  at  her,  tries  to  speak,  stammers, 
stops,  not  knowing  what  to  say.  Eve  then  takes 
a  step  toward  him,  smiles  commiseratingly,  and 
says: 

SP:  "You  Don't  Have  to  Do  That.  I  Have 
Learned  How  to  Handle  Mama.  You 
Don't  Have  to  Worry  about  My  Health." 
The  doctor  looks  at  her,  surprised  at  this  new 
Eve,  who  is  in  no  need  of  him  at  all  in  his  pro- 
fessional capacity.  Eve  looks  at  him,  throws 
out  her  arms  with  gestures  of  complete  victory 
over  all  her  worries,  and  says : 

SP:   "I  AM  Going  Back  to  New  York,  and  I  am 
Going  to  Live." 

Eve  then  turns,  starts,  goes  toward  the  door 
and  starts  to  go  out.  The  doctor  looks  at  her, 
struggles  with  himself,  worries  over  the  fact 
that  he  is  losing  her,  goes  toward  her,  and  says : 
"Eve!"  She  turns,  looks  at  him,  and  says: 
"Yes?"  He  looks  at  her  helplessly,  trying  to 
find  words  to  express  himself,  and  then  says : 

SP:   "I  Can't  Let  You  Go  Like  This." 

Eve  looks  at  him  calmly,  and  asks  why.  The 
doctor  looks  around  helplessly,  stalls  a  moment, 

,  and  then  says: 

SP:   "Because  I  Love  You." 

Eve  looks  at  him  a  moment,  and  then,  dropping 
all  her  pose,  simply  overcome  with  intense  re- 
lief, she  says : 

SP:    "Well,  That's  What  I've  Been  Trying  to 
Get  at." 
The  doctor  rushes  over  to  her,  grabs  her,  takes 


32  BREAKING  INTO  THE  MOVIES 

her  in  his  arms,  looks  into  her  face,  and  says: 
SP:    "You    Bold-faced,    Shameless    Little    Dar- 
ling." 
Then  gives  her  a  good  kiss,  and  we  fade  out. 

You  will  observe  that  in  the  scenario  there  are  many- 
lines  written  in  for  the  actors  to  speak  which  never 
appear  on  the  screen  (only  those  in  capitals  are  shown 
on  the  screen).  This  is  to  give  the  cast  a  chance  to 
say  the  things  they  would  say  in  real  life  under  the 
same  circumstances,  and  so  to  make  the  scene  entirely 
natural.  The  actor  speaks  all  the  lines  in  small  type 
and  also  those  in  the  capital  letters,  following  the 
abbreviation  "SP,"  which  stands  for  "Spoken  Title." 

Contrary  to  common  belief,  the  actors  really  speak 
the  words  of  their  lines.  There  was  a  day  when  the 
hero,  kissing  the  heroine  in  the  final  close-up,  might 
say  something  like  "Let's  go  out  and  get  a  cheese 
sandwich,  now  that  this  is  over."  But  just  about  this 
time  large  numbers  of  lip-readers  began  to  write  in  to 
the  producers,  kicking  against  this  sort  of  thing.  It 
seems  that  constant  attendance  at  the  movies  develops 
a  curious  power  of  following  a  speech  by  watching 
the  character's  lips.  And  from  that  day  the  slapstick 
comedians  who  used  to  swear  so  beautifully  before 
the  camera  and  the  heroines  of  the  serial  thrillers  who 
used  to  talk  about  the  weather  in  their  big  scenes 
began  to  speak  their  proper  lines. 


CHAPTER  IX 

INSIDE   THE   BRAIN   OF  A   MOVIE  STAR 

"But  they  have  no  brains !"  someone  is  sure  to  say. 

That  sort  of  thing  is  rather  cheap  cynicism.  As  a 
matter  of  fact,  they  have  plenty  of  brains,  but  of 
their  own  pecuHar  sort.  A  movie  actor,  Hke  any  other 
type  of  artist,  is  an  emotional,  temperamental  crea- 
ture; but  the  problem  which  worries  him  the  most  is 
one  of  intellect  rather  than  emotion ;  in  short,  just 
how  to  control  the  reactions  inside  that  discredited 
gray  matter  of  his. 

Every  movie  actor — and  you,  too,  if  you  enter  this 
field — is  at  one  time  or  another  confronted  with  the 
perplexing  problem  of  just  how  much  thought  he 
should  allow  to  go  into  his  work ;  that  is,  whether  his 
acting  should  be  emotional  or  intellectual.  The  ques- 
tion resolves  itself  into  this : 

Does  an  actor  feel? 

Should  he  feel? 

There  are  two  schools  of  thought  on  this  seem- 
ingly academic  but  in  reality  most  important  subject. 

First  are  those  wdio  say  that  an  actor  must  feel 
the  part  he  is  playing.  The  greatest  actors,  they  say, 
have  always  been  those  who  w"ore  themselves  out  in 
an  hour's  time,  because  they  felt  the  emotions  they 
portrayed.  They  tell  stories  such  as  that  of  Mrs.  Ken- 
dall, who,  having  lost  her  own  child,  electrified  an 

33 


34  BREAKING  INTO  THE  MOVIES 

English  audience  by  her  portrayal  of  the  bereaved 
mother  in  "East  Lynne"  to  such  an  extent  that  women 
leaped  to  their  feet  in  the  pit,  shouting,  "No  more,  no 
more."  They  point  to  the  fact  that  the  great  stars  of 
the  screen  and  the  stage  alike  are  able  to  simulate  the 
three  reactions  which  are  quite  beyond  the  control  of 
the  will — pallor,  blushing,  and  the  sudden  perspiration 
which  comes  with  great  terror  or  pain.  This,  they 
say,  is  proof  positive  that  these  actors  are  feeling 
every  emotion  as  they  enact  it. 

The  second  group  declares  that  all  this  is  nonsense 
and  that  if  an  actor  really  felt  his  part  he  would  lose 
control  of  himself,  and  perhaps  actually  murder  some 
other  actor  in  a  fight  scene.  Acting,  they  say,  is  an 
art  wherein  the  artist,  by  the  use  of  his  intellect,  is 
able  to  simulate  that  which  he  does  not  feel — using 
his  face  merely  as  the  painter  uses  his  canvas.  The 
moment  an  actor  begins  to  enter  into  his  part,  his 
acting  is  either  overdone  or  underdone  and  the  scene 
is  ruined.  The  whole  trick  of  it,  they  add,  is  to  keep 
perfectly  cool  and  know  exactly  what  you  are  doing, 
no  matter  how  spectacular  the  scene. 

Still  a  third  school  declares  that  both  these  views 
are  wrong,  and  that  acting  is  neither  a  matter  of 
thought  nor  of  emotion,  but  is  purely  imitative.  An 
actor  observes  his  own  emotions  as  he  experiences 
them  in  each  crisis  of  his  real  life,  they  say,  and  re- 
members them  so  well  that  he  is  afterward  able  to 
reproduce  them  before  the  camera. 

The  truth  of  it  seems  to  be  that  all  of  them  are 
partly  right  and  partly  wrong.  The  great  stars  of  the 
movies  to-day,  when  one  is  able  to  draw  them  out  on 
the  subject,  say  that  when  they  are  acting  they  are 


nJ      (U 


S      C 


U 


P-, 


o  = 


n 

T3 

(1) 

3 

e 

a) 

UJ 

INSIDE  THE  BRAlJSf  OF  A  MOVIE  STAR      35 

thinking  not  about  one  thing  but  about  several  things. 
The  brain  is  divided  into  different  strata,  and  while 
one  section  is  thinking  about  the  part,  another  section 
is  entering  into  it,  while  still  a  third  stratum  is  busy- 
ing itself  with  idle  speculation  about  the  cameraman 
and  the  director. 

There  are  two  important  secrets,  connected  with  the 
psychology  of  screen  acting,  which  every  beginner 
should  know,  even  if  he  never  makes  use  of  them. 
The  first  is  that  of  Preparation;  the  second,  that  of 
Auto-Suggestion. 

A  movie  actor  or  actress  is  in  a  more  difficult  posi- 
tion, so  far  as  the  artistry  of  his  work  is  concerned, 
than  the  players  of  the  spoken  drama.  In  the  movies 
the  scenes  are  nearly  always  taken  out  of  sequence, 
the  first  last,  the  last  first,  and  so  forth.  For  that 
reason  the  motion  picture  stars  have  great  difficulty 
in  working  themselves  up  to  the  proper  "pitch"  to  play 
a  scene,  inasmuch  as  they  have  not  been  through  the 
action  which  leads  up  to  it. 

The  movie  directors  know  this,  and  in  most  studios 
try  to  help  them  up  to  this  "pitch"  by  employing  small 
orchestras  to  play  during  the  important  scenes.  In 
nearly  every  large  studio  where  more  than  one  com- 
pany is  working  there  are  to  be  heard  the  faint  strains 
of  Sonata  Pathetique,  where  some  melancholy  scene 
is  being  taken,  or  livelier  music  for  a  bit  of  comedy 
in  another  set.  Also  the  directors  are  always  behind 
the  camera  to  guide  their  actors  with  spoken  direc- 
tions as  the  scene  is  made.  This  orchestra  business 
has  always  seemed  to  us  pure  buncombe,  but  if  the 
director  or  actor  gets  any  fun  out  of  it,  it  doesn't  do 
any  particular  harm. 


26  BREAKING  INTO  THE  MOVIES 

The  wise  movie  actors  of  to-day  are  borrowing 
these  two  tricks  of  Preparation  and  Auto-Suggestion 
from  their  brethren  of  the  stage. 

Preparation  consists  merely  of  spending  a  little 
time  before  the  scene  is  begun  in  going  over  the  part, 
in  thinking  about  it,  and  in  trying  really  to  feel  all  the 
emotions  of  the  character  in  question.  This  seems  a 
simple  matter ;  but  it  makes  the  difference  between 
real  acting  and  routine  work.  Once  an  actor  has  care- 
fully worked  out  the  part  for  himself  he  can  easily 
conform  to  the  director's  ideas ;  and  once  he  has  let 
himself  feel  his  part  he  need  waste  no  emotion  upon 
it  when  on  the  "set,"  for  his  mimetic  powers  will 
reproduce  his  feelings  of  an  hour  before. 

Auto-suggestion  consists  in  working  oneself  up  to 
the  part  before  going  before  the  camera  by  various 
expedients.  For  example,  one  actor,  before  playing  a 
part  calling  for  extreme  anger,  spends  some  ten  min- 
utes in  clenching  his  fists,  swearing  at  the  handiest 
fence  post,  setting  his  jaw — and  so  making  himself 
really  angry.  It  is  not  hard  to  reproduce  emotion  by 
these  tricks  of  auto-suggestion.  Try  thinking  of  some- 
thing sad — draw  your  face  down — and  before  long 
you  will  be  in  a  very  glum  mood.  That  is  the  way 
such  stars  as  Norma  Talmadge  and  Mary  Pickford 
produce  tears  on  short  notice.  Most  people  think 
they  are  tricks  of  make-up,  such  as  drops  of  glycerine ; 
as  a  matter  of  fact,  it  is  a  matter  of  puckering  the 
face  and  a  few  gloomy  thoughts. 

All  this  sort  of  thing  sounds  very  intricate  and 
unnecessary.  And  yet  it  is  the  really  practical  side 
of  screen  acting.     The  psychology  of  each  actor  is 


INSIDE  THE  BRAIN  OF  A  MOVIE  STAR      37 

different  and  his  manner  of  preparing  for  a  scene 
and  of  enacting  it  will  be  different.  The  important 
thing  is  that  he  be  aware  that  there  is  such  a  thing 
as  psychology,  and  that  if  he  will  only  understand  it 
as  applied  to  himself  he  can  improve  his  work  as  a 
film  player. 


CHAPTER  X 

SALARIES  IN   THE   MOVIES 

So  much  propaganda  and  press-agentry  has  been  at 
work  during  the  last  few  years  that  no  one  knows 
what  to  beHeve  of  the  movies.  There  appears  to  be 
a  sort  of  attenuated  smoke  cloud  thrown  up  about 
all  connected  with  the  artistic,  and,  more  particularly, 
the  financial  side  of  the  movies.  And  naturally  the 
first  question  to  be  asked  by  one  who  is  considering 
entering  this  field  as  a  vocation  is  "What  do  they  pay  ? 
Is  it  all  true?    Is  there  money  in  the  movies?" 

The  leading  stars  of  the  screen  get  anywhere  from 
one  thousand  to  ten  thousand  dollars  a  week.  There 
are  only  two  or  three  stars,  however,  who  get  as  high 
as  ten  thousand.  The  majority  range  between  one 
and  three  thousand. 

A  few  stars  are  paid  a  percentage  of  the  profits 
of  the  picture.  One  or  two  others  are  paid  a  lump 
sum  for  a  picture,  rather  than  a  weekly  salary,  and 
in  one  case  this  lump  sum  comes  to  eighty  thousand 
dollars. 

A  good  leading  man  or  leading  woman  gets  four 
or  five  hundred  dollars  a  week — some  much  more. 
First  rate  character  people,  or  "heavies,"  get  from 
three  to  five  hundred  a  week,  or,  if  called  on  to  play 
by  the  day,  get  anywhere  from  fifty  to  a  hundred 
dollars. 

38 


SALARIES  IN  THE  MOVIES  39 

The  smaller  parts  bring  salaries  ranging  from  fifty 
to  two  hundred  dollars.  "Bits,"  such  as  the  butler 
who  opens  the  door,  which  involve  a  small  bit  of  indi- 
vidual acting,  although  really  merely  atmospheric 
work,  bring  ten  dollars  a  day  or  thereabouts.  Extras 
for  the  crowd  scenes  get  about  five  dollars  a  day. 

The  salaries  of  directors  range  all  the  way  from 
ten  thousand  dollars  a  week,  which  is  the  emolument 
of  one  great  artist,  down  to  the  hundred  and  fifty  a 
week  of  the  fly-by-night  concerns.  The  average 
director  in  a  large  company  gets  anywhere  from  five 
hundred  to  a  thousand  dollars  a  week,  especially  as  at 
present  there  is  a  great  shortage  of  good  directors. 

Scenario  writers  are  paid  according  to  the  type  of 
work  they  do.  If  they  write  original  stories  they  may 
get  from  one  thousand  to  twenty  thousand  dollars  for 
them.  Of  course,  the  published  works  of  notable 
authors  or  the  stage  hits  of  famous  playwrights  bring 
more. 

Writers  doing  the  adaptations  or  "continuities"  of 
the  stories  of  others  are  more  often  paid  by  the  week. 
The  big  scenario  writers  get  salaries  ranging  up  to 
hundreds  of  thousands  of  dollars  a  year,  for  this  is 
fast  becoming  the  most  important  work  of  the  entire 
industry.  The  lesser  lights  seldom  receive  less  than 
twenty  thousand  dollars  a  year. 

Cameramen  get  from  one  hundred  to  three  hundred 
dollars  a  week.  Art  directors  receive  several  hundred 
dollars  a  week,  but  few  companies  have  as  yet  realized 
the  necessity  of  employing  specialists  in  scenic  art. 

A  good  five-reel  feature  picture  to-day  costs  about 
sixty  thousand  dollars  to  produce.  If  a  famous  star 
is  employed,  the  cost  of  the  picture  goes  to  a  hundred 


40  BREAKING  INTO  THE  MOVIES 

thousand  dollars,  or  even  a  hundred  and  fifty.  "  'Way 
Down  East,"  Griffith's  latest  production,  cost  just 
under  a  million  dollars  to  produce. 

The  profits  of  the  picture  come  out  of  its  run,  which 
may  last  seven  or  eight  years,  and  even  longer  in 
Europe.  A  one  hundred  thousand  dollar  picture  may 
eventually  make  half  a  million  dollars  for  its  backers, 
but,  of  course,  they  have  a  long  wait  for  their  money. 
On  the  other  hand,  the  risk  is  stupendous,  for  the 
picture  may  be  a  flat  failure. 

One  cheering  fact,  attested  by  all  motion  picture 
magnates,  is  that,  whatever  may  be  the  case  in  other 
industries,  salaries  are  not  going  to  drop  in  the  movies. 
On  the  contrary,  the  movies  are  growing  bigger  and 
bigger  and  the  demand  is  greater  than  ever  before. 
There  is  money  in  the  movies  now,  and  there  will  be 
even  more  in  the  next  few  years. 


CHAPTER  XI 


SCENARIOS 


On  the  legitimate  stage  nearly  every  actor  at  one 
time  or  another  writes  a  play.  In  the  same  way,  in 
the  movies  nearly  every  actor  tries  his  hand  at  sce- 
nario writing.  In  fact,  many  of  the  most  successful 
playwrights  and  photodramatists  have  had  stage  or 
screen  experience  as  actors. 

For  this  reason,  although  this  series  is  designed 
more  for  those  who  wish  to  act  than  for  those  who 
wish  to  write — and  although  we  have  already  one  book 
on  "How  to  Write  Photoplays" — nevertheless,  a  chap- 
ter on  scenario  writing  is  not  out  of  place. 

There  is  a  fine  career  for  any  writer  in  scenario 
writing  if  the  writer  will  only  take  the  trouble  to  study 
it  seriously.  There  is  technique  in  writing  plots  and 
still  more  technique  in  adapting  those  plots  to  the 
screen,  by  writing  them  into  scenario  form.  Studio 
experience  is  of  vast  benefit  to  anyone  who  wishes  to 
write  movie  stories ;  and  that  is  where  the  actor  has 
the  advantage  over  the  outsider  who  tries  to  write 
scenarios  with  no  practical  knowledge  of  how  movies 
are  really  made. 

First  write  your  plot  into  a  five  hundred  or  thousand 
word  synopsis,  just  as  you  would  write  it  for  a  maga- 
zine.    Make  it  brief  and  clear.     Be  sure  it  is  based 

41 


42         BREAKING  INTO  THE  MOVIES 

upon  action,  mental  or  physical,  and  try  to  give  real 
character  to  your  plot  people. 

In  choosing  your  story  be  sure  it  has  the  dramatic 
quality.  It  must  not  be  rambling ;  and  it  must  have  an 
element  of  conflict  between  opposing  factors — a  man 
and  a  woman,  a  woman  and  her  Destiny,  or  simply 
Good  and  Evil — which  leads  up  to  a  crisis  in  which 
the  matter  is  fought  out  and  finally  settled.  Stories 
which  have  not  these  qualities  are  suitable  for  novels, 
perhaps,  but  not  for  plays. 

It  is,  as  a  general  rule,  inadvisable  to  try  historical 
stories  or  stories  which  require  elaborate  scenes. 
Battle  stories  and  stories  of  the  Jules  Verne  or  H.  G. 
Wells  type  are  also  difficult  to  place.  The  great  de- 
mand to-day  is  for  sane,  wholesome  stories  of  modern 
American  life,  wherein  character  is  the  paramount 
interest  rather  than  eccentricities  of  the  plot  or  camera. 

Send  your  story  in  synopsis  form  to  the  scenario 
editor  of  the  studio  which  employs  the  star  for  whom 
you  think  the  story  is  best  suited.  Send  with  it  a 
stamped  and  self -addressed  envelope  for  the  return 
of  your  script,  if  it  is  not  suitable  for  their  use. 
Keep  on  sending  it ;  don't  be  discouraged  by  rejection 
slips.  You  may  write  dozens  of  stories  and  then  sell 
the  very  first  one  you  wrote. 

If  the  studio  buys  your  story  it  is  well  to  ask  for 
an  opportunity  to  help  write  the  "continuity,"  or 
scenario  form.  This  is  a  highly  technical  but  very  well 
paid  task,  and  one  which  every  screen  author  should 
learn.  The  chance  to  enter  the  studio  and  help  work 
out  the  scenario  of  your  own  story  is  worth  trying  for. 

Scenarios  to-day  are  more  in  demand  than  ever  be- 
fore ;  but  producers  are  still  chary  of  taking  chances 


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SCENARIOS  43 

on  untried  amateurs.  The  amateur  author's  greatest 
success  is  when  he  sells  his  first  story.  The  road  is 
comparatively  easy  after  that. 

Original  plots  for  five-reel  pictures  sell  from  $1,000 
to  $20,000,  depending  upon  the  reputation  of  the  author 
and  the  standing  of  the  company  which  buys  them. 
Of  course,  some  of  the  smaller  companies  pay  less 
than  this,  and  two  and  three  reel  features  sell  for  less. 

Published  stories  and  novels,  and  plays  which  have 
had  a  run,  bring  enormous  prices.  Griffith  recently 
paid  $150,000  for  the  film  rights  on  a  play.  Fifty  and 
seventy  thousand  dollars  are  frequently  paid  for  sim- 
ilar plot  material,  but  that  is  because  of  the  advertis- 
ing value  in  the  names  of  the  plays  or  books,  or  the 
reputation  of  the  writers,  which  assures  the  producers 
that  the  story  is  almost  sure  to  make  a  good  photoplay. 

The  highest  paid  workers  in  the  movies  to-day  are 
the  continuity  writers,  who  put  the  stories  into  sce- 
nario form  and  write  the  "titles"  or  written  inserts. 
The  income  of  some  of  these  writers  runs  into  hun- 
dreds of  thousands  of  dollars  a  year.  It  is  extraor- 
dinarily interesting  work  and  well  worth  while  learn- 
ing; but  unfortunately  the  technical  training  for  this 
sort  of  thing  takes  as  much  time  as  the  training  neces- 
sary to  enter  any  other  profession. 

Scenario  writing  does  not  require  great  genius.  It 
does  require  a  dramatic  insight  and  certain  amount 
of  training.  It  is  the  latter  factor  that  most  amateurs 
overlook.  If  you  are  to  write  scenarios,  you  must  take 
your  work  as  seriously  as  you  would  if  you  were  trying 
to  write  music  or  paint  pictures. 


CHAPTER  XII 

HOW   OTHERS    HAVE  DONE   IT 

The  histories  of  the  movie  celebrities  are  as  pic- 
turesque as  the  story  of  their  industry.  Nearly  all 
of  them  have  risen  from  the  ranks.  Few  of  them,  in 
the  days  when  the  motion  picture  was  classed  as  a 
freak  novelty,  expected  the  present  ainazing  expansion 
of  the  industry ;  still  fewer  had  any  conception  of  their 
own  latent  talents  in  photodramatic  art. 

But  characteristics  which  they  all  had  in  common 
were  determination  to  succeed  in  their  profession,  a 
modest  faith  in  its  future,  and  a  desire  to  learn  the 
business  from  the  ground  up. 

It  is  a  curious  fact  that  many  of  the  directors  of 
to-day  were  once  automobile  mechanics.  This  is  not 
because  automobile  mechanics  are  as  a  class  better 
fitted  for  such  work,  but  because,  in  the  old  days  of 
1907  and  1908  and  1909,  when  everything  started,  they 
had  a  singular  opportunity  to  apprentice  themselves 
to  the  profession. 

In  those  days  companies  worked  almost  entirely 
out  of  doors,  and  the  cameraman  transported  his  para- 
phernalia in  an  automobile.  The  driver  of  the  auto- 
mobile would  usually  assist  the  cameraman  in  "setting 
up";  a  friendship  would  spring  up  between  them; 
presently  the  driver  would  be  assistant  cameraman, 
then  chief  cameraman,  and  finally  director.    Of  course, 

44 


HOW  OTHERS  HAVE  DONE  IT    45 

directors  have  been  recruited  from  every  profession 
and  every  class — actors,  authors,  professors,  news- 
paper men,  scene  carpenters,  artists — for  the  dramatic 
gift  is  not  confined  to  any  class.  What  a  man's  pro- 
fession was  before  he  entered  the  movies  has  nothing 
to  do  with  his  career  thereafter;  he  has  to  learn  every- 
thing all  over  again,  and  a  very  good  actor,  with  years 
of  studio  experience,  may  make  a  very  poor  director, 
whereas  an  unsuccessful  tinsmith  might  suddenly  rise 
to  the  top  by  virtue  of  an  innate  gift  for  this  type  of 
work. 

The  scenario  writers  of  to-day  have  also  grown  up 
with  the  business.  Some  were  newspaper  men  who 
broke  into  the  game  as  press-agents  ;  some  were  actors ; 
others  were  directors.  Recently  a  large  nimiber  of 
professional  playwrights,  novelists  and  authors  with 
magazine  experience  have  entered  the  movies  to  learn 
scenario  writing,  but  this  is  a  new  development. 

The  writers  of  this  series  have  been  asked  to  tell 
how  they  themselves  broke  into  the  scenario  offices. 
Unlike  the  others,  our  own  story  has  nothing  pic- 
turesque about  it.  Miss  Loos  was  born  and  bred  in 
a  California  town;  she  was  the  daughter  of  a  news- 
paper proprietor  and  inherited  that  fatal  desire  to 
write.  At  the  age  of  fourteen  she  sent  her  first  sce- 
nario to  Griffith ;  for  a  miracle,  it  was  accepted — ^but, 
of  course,  it  was  easy  to  sell  stories  in  those  days, 
when  scenario  writing  was  almost  unheard  of  outside 
of  California.  Soon  after  this  she  paid  a  personal 
visit  to  the  Griffith  studios  and  became  the  youngest 
scenario  editor  in  the  world,  turning  out  a  new  story 
about  every  six  weeks.  Some  six  years  ago  Mr.  Emer- 
son left  his  post  as  producer  for  Frohman  on  the 


46  BREAKING  INTO  THE  MOVIES 

legitimate  stage  and  went  to  Hollywood  to  keep  an  eye 

on  the  filming  of  one  of  his  own  plays  which  was  being 
adapted  from  the  "speakies."  He  decided  to  make  the 
movies  a  permanent  profession,  and  with  this  in  mind 
worked  as  an  actor  about  the  Griffith  studios  to  learn 
the  rudiments  of  the  game.  Some  months  after  this 
he  was  allowed  to  direct  his  first  picture ;  and  at  this 
time  he  met  Miss  Loos,  who  was  to  write  the  scenario. 
After  that  they  collaborated  in  the  Doug'  Fairbanks' 
pictures — and  that's  that. 

Most  of  the  present-day  movie  actors  and  actresses 
gained  their  experience  as  extras,  although  a  few  have 
first  made  their  success  on  the  legitimate  stage  and 
then  stepped  directly  into  film  stardom.  Doug'  Fair- 
banks was  one  of  the  latter,  and  so  was  Mary  Pick- 
ford.  Charley  Chaplin  and  Wallace  Reid,  on  the 
other  hand,  have  done  little  of  note  outside  of  the 
movies. 

Both  Norma  Talmadge  and  Constance  Talmadge 
rose  from  the  ranks.  They  took  small  parts  in  the 
old  Vitagraph  pictures ;  but  their  extraordinary  beauty 
and  talent  was  immediately  recognized  by  the  directors, 
and  they  were  permitted  to  try  bits,  then  parts,  and 
finally  leads.  Norma  Talmadge  went  in  for  the  more 
emotional  roles,  while  Constance  developed  her  ability 
as  a  comedienne.  Within  six  years  they  have  attained 
to  position  of  leadership  in  their  respective  fields. 

D.  W.  Griffith  himself  was  once  an  extra.  He  was 
a  good  extra,  too,  according  to  some  of  his  former 
employers  who  now  work  under  him  in  his  great 
studios  at  Mamaroneck,  Conn.  But  he  had  all  manner 
of  queer  ideas  as  to  how  pictures  should  be  acted,  and 


HOW  OTHERS  HAVE  DONE  IT    47 

directed  and  photographed.  For  example,  he  thought 
that  more  effective  scenes  might  be  made,  at  times,  by 
photographing  actors  "close  up,"  cutting  off  their  legs 
and  arms  with  the  frame  of  the  picture  and  showing 
only  their  faces  many  times  enlarged;  also  he  had  a 
theory  that  one  might  heighten  the  dramatic  suspense 
by  "cutting  back"  from  one  scene  to  another,  instead 
of  following  one  line  of  action  in  a  monotonous  se- 
quence through  an  entire  photoplay.  The  directors  and 
actors  and  cameramen  of  those  days,  who  would  no 
sooner  have  thought  of  taking  a  character's  picture 
from  the  bust  up  than  of  taking  the  picture  upside 
down,  were  nevertheless  interested  in  this  eccentric 
chap,  and  even  asked  his  advice  from  time  to  time. 
Finally,  the  eccentric  extra  got  his  chance  as  a  director 
to  try  out  a  few  of  these  radical  theories.  His  "The 
Birth  of  a  Nation"  changed  the  entire  technique  of  the 
movies. 

Many  noted  directors  received  their  training  in 
directing  plays  for  the  legitimate  stage,  as,  for  exam- 
ple, Hugh  Ford.  Others,  hke  Marshall  Neilan,  or 
Allan  Dwan,  came  in  from  outside  professions.  Vic- 
tor Fleming,  formerly  director  for  Douglas  Fairbanks 
and  Constance  Talmadge,  was  one  of  the  latter. 
His  first  success,  many  years  ago,  was  as  an 
automobile  designer,  but  his  interest  always  lay 
with  the  theater ;  he  resigned  his  post  with  the  auto- 
mobile company  at  about  the  age  when  most  young 
men  are  seeking  their  first  jobs,  and  decided  to  learn 
the  business  of  making  movies.  The  same  creative 
faculty  which  made  his  automobile  designs  distinctive 
in  the  old  days  manifested  itself  in  his  pictures  last 


48         BREAKING  INTO  THE  MOVIES 

year,  "The  Mollycoddle"  and  "When  the  Qouds  Roll 
By." 

There  are  a  million  ways  to  break  into  the  movies. 
No  one  can  imitate  the  career  of  another.  Don't  read 
other  people's  biographies;  go  out  and  make  one  for 
yourself. 


CHAPTER  XIII 

AMATEUR    MOVIE    MAKING 

Amateur  theatrical  clubs,  theater  guilds,  and  the 
lilce,  have  done  much  to  make  the  modern  drama  the 
great  art  that  it  is.  But  because  of  the  overwhelming 
expense  heretofore  attached  to  the  making  of  movies 
there  have  been  no  attempts  at  any  similar  activities 
in  the  films.  The  movies  have  never  had  the  ad- 
vantage of  the  experiments  of  amateur  societies. 

To-day,  however,  the  making  of  movies  by  amateurs 
is  a  distinct  possibility.  The  possibilities  of  making 
a  motion  picture  at  comparatively  little  expense  were 
first  drawn  to  public  attention  five  years  ago  when 
two  young  men,  both  of  whom  have  become  well- 
known  directors,  made  a  saleable  photoplay  in  their 
own  back  yard.  These  boys  had  many  theories  about 
what  a  movie  should  and  should  not  be,  but  they 
could  never  find  a  company  wilHng  to  give  their 
theories  a  trial.  Finally  they  hit  upon  the  original 
expedient  of  buying  their  own  camera  and  making  a 
picture  in  which  nearly  all  the  actors  were  children 
and  which  therefore  cost  very  little  money.  Nearly 
all  the  scenes  were  exteriors,  so  that  practically  no 
scenery  was  required.  The  picture  was  most  original 
and  in  spite  of  their  technical  shortcomings,  they  found 
a  fairly  profitable  sale. 

49 


50  BREAKING  INTO  THE  MOVIES 

If  you  desire  to  write,  direct  or  act  in  the  pictures, 
you  can  have  no  better  experience  than  trying  to  make 
a  picture  of  your  own,  even  if  at  first  you  are  not  very 
successful. 

The  great  initial  expense  for  this  sort  of  thing  is, 
of  course,  the  outlay  required  to  buy  a  camera.  In 
most  towns  of  any  size  there  are  now  professional 
movie  cameramen  who  work  for  the  news  reel  com- 
panies and  who  may  be  hired  for  a  comparatively 
small  sum.  If,  however,  you  desire  to  make  your 
photoplay  an  entirely  amateur  affair,  you  can  buy  a 
usable  second-hand  camera  for  outdoor  work  for  as 
low  as  a  hundred  dollars. 

Some  one  of  your  associates  must  make  it  his  busi- 
ness to  learn  to  run  this  camera  with  sufficient  skill 
to  insure  that  your  film  will  not  be  wasted. 

The  next  important  outlay  is  that  of  the  film  itself. 
Film  costs  about  eleven  or  twelve  cents  a  foot  when 
developed  and  printed.  Therefore,  the  cost  of  pro- 
duction depends  largely  upon  the  length  of  your  pic- 
ture. For  a  first  attempt  we  should  advise  you  to 
keep  your  photoplay  within  2,000  feet,  or  two  reels. 

Start  by  writing  a  simple  story  into  a  scenario  with 
as  many  exterior  scenes  as  possible.  The  necessary  in- 
teriors, such  as  rooms  or  hallways,  may  be  built  by 
your  own  amateurs,  outdoors,  as  they  are  often  built 
in  California,  so  that  no  lights  will  be  necessary.  You 
can  paint  your  own  subtitle  cards — the  written  in- 
serts— and  film  them  yourself. 

It  is  not  necessary  to  make  the  scenes  in  their  nat- 
ural sequence.  After  the  picture  is  finished  and  devel- 
oped, however,   someone  must   assemble  and  cut   it. 


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AMATEUR  MOVIE  MAKING  51 

This  means  that  you  must  rent  the  use  of  the  pro- 
jection machine  at  your  local  theater  for  a  few  morn- 
ings, and  get  the  local  operator  to  help  you  splice  and 
cement  the  film  together  in  its  correct  order  of  long 
shots  and  close-ups.  There  is  no  rule  for  this  work 
except  that  of  practical  values  on  the  screen.  Just 
run  your  bits  of  film  through  the  projection  machine 
and  stick  them  together  the  way  they  look  best.  It 
is  a  matter  of  artistic  perception  rather  than  any  set 
rule. 

If  your  scenario  calls  for  an  outdoor  picture — for 
example,  a  cowboy  story — which  does  not  require  cos- 
tumes, you  should  be  able  to  make  it  for  a  thousand 
dollars,  provided  your  amateur  actors,  and  amateur 
cameramen,  and  amateur  authors  are  working  for 
nothing.  There  are  mighty  few  amateur  theatricals 
of  any  pretention  whatsoever  which  do  not  cost  as 
much  as  this,  and  you  should  be  able  to  take  in  a  good 
profit  if  your  picture  is  exploited  in  your  local 
theaters. 

As  a  matter  of  fact,  pictures  have  not  always  been 
produced  on  the  scale  that  they  are  to-day.  Ten  years 
ago  feature  pictures  cost  from  $5,000  to  $7,000  to 
make,  and  in  those  days  film  and  cameras  were  much 
more  expensive.  The  producers  simply  made  outdoor 
pictures  which  required  no  lights  or  scenery,  and  saved 
on  the  salaries  of  actors  and  directors,  which  have 
multipHed  twenty  times  since  then.  To-day  the  average 
feature  picture  costs  from  $50,000  to  $150,000  to  pro- 
duce. Griffith's  "  'Way  Down  East"  cost  nearly  a 
million  to  produce.  That  is  because  the  salaries  of 
actors,  directors  and  authors  have  risen  so  enormously. 


52  BREAKING  INTO  THE  MOVIES 

But  there  is  no  reason  why  an  amateur  company  in 
which  the  cost  of  salaries  is  completely  eliminated  can- 
not make  their  own  picture  at  a  minimum  expense.  If 
you  want  to  break  into  the  movies,  here  is  a  way  to  do 
it,  tight  in  your  own  home  town. 


INTRODUCTORY  NOTE  TO  PART  II 

Whether  you  desire  to  break  into  the  movies  as 
writer,  actor  or  director,  your  most  important  consid- 
eration will  be  the  scenario.  In  the  scenario  you  will 
find  all  the  elements  of  the  photoplay;  everything  is 
built  upon  that  as  a  foundation.  The  actor  or  director 
who  sincerely  desires  to  do  good  work  studies  his 
script  assiduously.  The  ambitious  writer  analyzes  not 
only  his  own  photoplays,  but  those  of  other  people. 

It  is  exceedingly  difficult  to  talk  technique  to  anyone 
who  has  never  read  a  scenario.  For  this  reason  we 
have  incorporated  a  "continuity"  in  this  book.  It  is 
the  dramatic  form  of  a  screen  story  which  we  have 
made  as  a  special  production.  The  titles,  which  are 
the  written  inserts  to  be  flashed  on  the  screen,  are  in 
capital  letters.  The  inserts  refer  to  such  articles  as 
letters,  telegrams,  pictures,  and  the  like,  which  may  be 
shown  in  close-up.  The  "iris"  is  the  broadening  or 
narrowing  of  the  frame  of  the  picture  to  open  or  close 
a  scene,  or  to  emphasize  some  particular  object  which 
is  "irised"  upon.  The  "fade"  effects  are  used  very 
much  as  the  curtain  of  the  legitimate  stage  is  used  to 
open  and  close  scenes.  The  abbreviation  "Sp"  means 
"Speech,"  indicating  that  the  title  which  follows  is  to 
be  spoken  by  the  actor.  Some  of  the  quoted  lines — the 
ones  not  set  off  in  capitals — are  not  shown  on  the 
screen,  but  are  merely  given  as  a  guide  for  the  players. 

53 


54  BREAKING  INTO  THE  MOVIES 

Most  of  the  directions  concerning  the  scenes  are  also 
given  in  capital  letters.  "EXTERIOR,"  or  the  abbre- 
viated "EXT.,"  for  example,  refers  to  a  scene  out- 
doors, while  "INTERIOR"  or  "INT.,"  is  an  indoor 
scene.  The  terms  "LONG  SHOT"  and  "CLOSE-UP" 
refer  to  the  distance  at  which  the  camera  is  placed 
from  the  scene. 

"Red  Hot  Romance"  is  played  as  a  romantic  melo- 
drama, but  is  intended  as  a  satire  upon  this  very  type 
of  story,  with  its  incredibly  heroic  hero,  its  American 
girl,  its  marines-to-the-rescue  and  all  the  rest  of  it. 
Basil  Sydney  and  May  Collins  played  the  parts  of 
Roland  and  Rosalie,  and  Victor  Fleming  was  the 
director. 


RED  HOT  ROMANCE 

T:  IT'S   BAD   ENOUGH   FOR  SOME   TO   BOSS 

THE     REST    OF    US    WHILE    THEY    ARE 
ALIVE,     BUT    THE     LIMIT     IS     REACHED 
WHEN  THEY  WANT  TO  KEEP  RIGHT  ON 
AFTER  THEY  HAVE  CASHED  IN. 
T:  FOR   INSTANCE,  THERE   WAS    OLD   HAR- 

DER N.  STONE,  THE  VICE-PRESIDENT  OF 
THE  BRITISH-AMERICAN  INSURANCE  CO. 
L  LIBRARY,  STONE  HOME  IN  WASHING- 
TON. (Fade  in.)  Harder  N.  Stone,  an  old  skin- 
flint, is  seated  at  his  desk  writing. 
INSERT — Stone's  hand  writing  the  following: 

"I,  Harder  N.  Stone,  of  Washington,  D.  C, 
hereby  direct  that,  should  I  die  before  my  son, 
Roland  Stone,  he  is  to  receive  from  my  estate 
the  sum  of  $50.00  per  week  and  the  use  of  my 
residence  in  Washington,  D.  C,  until  his  twenty- 
fifth  birthday." 

Stone  sits  back  and  regards  what  he  has  been 
writing,  smiles  smugly,  and  then  continues  writ- 
ing. 
INSERT — Stone's  hand  writing  the  following: 

"On    his    twentj'-fifth    birthday,    provided    he 

has    lived   according   to    instructions   herein    set 

down,  my  son,  Roland  Stone,  is  to  receive  his 

inheritance  at  the  hands  of  my  chosen  executor. 

Lord    Howe-Greene,    of    London,    President    of 

the  British-American   Insurance  Co." 

Stone    sits   back   and    reads    over    what    he   has 

written  and  is  highly  pleased.     He  then  rings  for 

a  servant  and   presently   Briggs   enters.     He   is  a 

little  English  butler,  who  has  been  in  the  family 

for  years.     Stone  turns  to  him  and  tells  him  that 

he  has  just  been  making  out  his  will.     Briggs  is 

properly  imoressed  and  Stone  says  to  him: 

SP:         "BRIGGS,  I  HAVE  PROVIDED  IN  MY  WILL 

55 


56  BREAKING  INTO  THE  MOVIES 

THAT  IF  I  DIE  BEFORE  MY  SON  YOU  ARE 
TO  STAY  ON  WITH  HIM  AS  LONG  AS  YOU 
LIVE." 

Briggs  is  highly  pleased,  thanks  him,  Stone 
dismisses  him,  goes  on  writing.  (Fade  out.) 
THE  OLD  BOY  DID  DIE,  AS  HE  DE- 
SERVED TO,  AND  LEFT  HIS  SON  AND 
HEIR,  ROLAND  STONE,  WITH  NOTHING 
TO  DO  BUT  LIVE  ON  $50.00  PER  WEEK. 
2.  ROLAND'S  BEDROOM.  (Fade  in.)  He  is 
lolling  in  bed  in  pajamas  and  dressing  gown, 
smoking  a  cigarette  and  opening  a  stack  of  bills 
and  reading  them. 
INSERT — top  bill — tailor's  bill  with  a  balance  from  the 
month  before  and  about  $275.00  for  this  month 
with  a  note  in  heavy  letters  "PLEASE  REMIT." 
This  one  is  turned  over,  and  the  second  one  is 
from  a  club  with  a  statement  "You  have  this  day 
been  posted  for  $179.00  and  your  credit  is  hereby 
suspended  until  same  is  paid."  This  bill  is  turned 
over  and  the  third  bill  is  from  a  florist's  for  $950.00 
worth  of  flowers  sent  to  Miss  Rosalie  Bird  and 
has  a  note  reading:  "Impossible  for  us  to  fill 
any  more  orders  until  these  bills  are  paid." 

Roland  puts  down  the  bills  in  disgust,  not 
looking  further,  as  he  knows  they're  all  alike. 

Briggs,  the  butler,  now  enters  and  takes  up 
the  breakfast  tray  which  is  lying  on  the  bed 
opposite  beside  Roland.  Roland  looks  up  to  him, 
then  looks  at  the  bills,  and  says: 
SP:  "HOW  DO  YOU  EXPECT  ME  TO  PAY 
THESE  BILLS  ON  $50.00  A  WEEK?" 

Briggs  shrugs  his  shoulders  as  though  he 
had  nothing  to  do  with  it,  and  suggests  that 
Roland's  bills  are  too  big.  He  then  leaves.  Ro- 
land looks  after  him,  disgusted,  runs  through  a 
few  more  bills,  throws  them  on  the  floor  and  at 
this  juncture,  Tom,  Roland's  valet,  a  big  husky 
negro  with  a  child-like,  innocent  smile,  enters  the 
room  with  letters,  goes  to  Roland  and  hands  him 
the  letters.  Roland  looks  at  them  and  sees  they 
are  more  bills,  puts  them  down.  Tom  picks  up 
others  from  floor  and  gives  them  to  Roland,  much 
to  his  disgust.     He  looks  up  to  Tom  and  says: 


RED  HOT  ROMANCE  57 

SP:  "YOU'RE  A  FINE  'SECRETARY' I  WHAT 
DO  I  PAY  YOU  FOR?" 

Tom.  looks  up  at  him,  round-eyed  and  smiles 
and  says: 

SP:         "YOU   DON'T." 

This  is  a  poser  for  Roland  for  a  moment,  he 
finally  regains   his   composure  and   says: 

SP:  "WELL,  I  AM  GOING  TO  WHEN  I  GET  MY 
INHERITANCE  NEXT  APRIL." 

Tom  nods  his  head  quizzically  as  he  has  heard 
this  many  times  before.  Roland  then  picks  up  the 
bills,  runs  through  them  again  and  says: 

SP:  "THE  QUESTION  NOW  IS— HOW  ARE  WE 
GOING  TO    LIVE  UNTIL  APRIL?" 

He  sighs,  reaches  over  to  a  table  which  has  a 
little  calendar  on  it,  picks  up  the  calendar,  sees 
that  it  is  the  13th  of  January,  and  runs  through 
the  pages  very  dubiously.  He  finally  looks  up 
at  Tom,  shovifs  him  how  many  days  they  have  to 
live  through   on   the  calendar,  and   says: 

SP:  "I  HAVEN'T  A  NICKEL  AND  I  CAN'T 
BORROW  ANYTHING  NOW.  HOW  ARE 
WE  GOING  TO   LIVE  UNTIL  APRIL?" 

Tom  looks  about  very  dubiously.  Finally  he 
gets  an  idea,  he  looks  from  one  object  of  furni- 
ture to  another,  and  his  idea  grows  until  he  is 
fairly  beaming  and  he  says: 

SP:  "THEY'S  A  MIGHTY  LOT  OF  HOCKABLE 
STUFF  AROUND  HEAH,  BOSS!" 

He  indicates  the  things  around  the  room,  and 
Roland  is  delighted  with  the  idea.  He  picks  up 
the  bunch  of  bills,  looks  at  the  top  one. 

INSERT— TAILOR'S   BILL. 

Roland  then  looks  around  for  something  to  pay 
that  with  and  his  eye  falls  upon  an  antique  vase. 
He  jumps  out  of  bed,  takes  the  vase  and  hands 
it  to  Tom  together  with  the  tailor's  bill,  sayinjg 
that  that  will  pay  for  that.  Roland  looks  at  the 
next  bill. 

INSERT— BILL  FROM  CLUB. 

Roland  then  takes  a  couple  of  ornaments  from 
the  mantel,  gives  them  to  Tom  together  with  the 
club  bill  saying  that  they  will  pay  for  that. 
Roland  then  looks  at  the  next  bill. 


58  BREAKING  INTO  THE  MOVIES 

INSERT— FLORIST'S  BILL. 

Roland  then  takes  a  picture  from,  the  wall,  leav- 
ing a  discolored  place  behind  it,  saying  that  will 
pay  for  that.  He  then  thinks  a  moment  and  picks 
up  a  little  antique  clock  and  hands  it  to  Tom, 
saying: 

SP:         "AND    BUY    HER    SOME    ORCHIDS    WITH 
THIS." 

Tom  grins,  goes  out  loaded  down  with  all  the 
junk.  Roland  looks  after  him,  very  pleased  with 
himself,  and,  probably  thinking  of  his  girl  and 
the    orchids,   smiles,   and   fade   out. 

T:  INDICATING  THAT  IT'S  TEA  TIME. 

3.  EXTERIOR  COLONEL  BIRD'S  HOUSE. 
(Fade   in.) 

Roland  comes  down  the  street  with  a  bunch 
of  orchids  in  his  hand  and  goes  up  and  rings 
the  bell. 

T:  COLONEL  BIRD,  OF  VIRGINIA,  WHO  HAS 

BEEN  HANGING  AROUND  WASHINGTON 
FOR  THIRTY-FIVE  YEARS,  WAITING  FOR 
A  JOB  WHICH  WAS  FIRST  PROMISED 
HIM  BY  PRESIDENT  CLEVELAND. 
4  PARLOR,  COLONEL  BIRD'S  HOUSE.  Colo- 
nel Bird,  seated  at  a  desk,  very  busily  reading 
several  large  law  books  and  making  notes,  trying 
to  "kid"  himself  into  believing  that  he  is  busy. 
A  colored  mammy  presently  shows  in  Roland, 
who  greets  the  Colonel  very  effusively.  The 
Colonel  asks  Roland  to  sit  down,  which  he  does. 
The  servant  exits.  The  Colonel,  not  being  very 
greatly  impressed  with  Roland,  excuses  himself 
and  goes  on  with  his  work,  explaining  that  he 
has  some  very  important  matters  on  hand. 
Roland  looks  at  him,  smiles  to  himself,  then  looks 
out   expectantly  toward   the   hall. 

T:     THE  COLONEL'S  DAUGHTER,  ROSALIE, 
THE  LADY  OF  THE  ORCHIDS. 

5.  HALLWAY,  COLONEL'S  HOUSE.  Rosalie 
comes  down  the   stairs  and  enters   the  parlor. 

6.  PARLOR,  COLONEL'S  HOUSE.  Rosalie 
rushes  over,  greets  Roland.  The  Colonel 
rises  until  Roland  and  the  girl  are  seated  on  a 
sofa,     when     he     sits     and     goes     on     with     his 


RED  HOT  ROMANCE  59 

work.    Roland  gives  Rosalie  the  orchids.     Rosalie 
thanks   him,  but   says: 
SP:         "ROLAND,    YOU     SHOULDN'T     BUY     OR- 
CHID'S  EVERY   DAY." 

She  then  points  around  to  different  vases  in  the 
room,  all  of  which  are  full  of  orchids.  She  holds 
on  to  the  orchids  and  gives  Roland  a  little  lecture 
on  economy,  telling  him  he  has  no  business  to 
spend  his  money  so  foolishly.  And  Roland  says 
he  thought  she  liked  orchids.  She  says  she  does 
and  he's  a  dear  sweet  boy  to  bring  them,  but  he 
sees  she  is  not  pleased  and  is  correspondingly 
depressed. 

7.  EXTERIOR  COLONEL'S  BIRD'S  HOUSE. 
A  low  rakish  roadster  drives  up  and  out  of  it 
gets  Jim  Conwell.  He  has  a  small  sized  package 
in  his   hand. 

CLOSE  UP — And  he   runs  up  and  rings  the  bell. 

T:  JIM  CONWELL  IS  ONE  OF  THAT  BROTH- 

ERHOOD OF  DIPLOMATIC  HANGERS-ON 
WHO  MAKE  A  SHADY  LIVELIHOOD  BY 
DOING  THE  DIRTY  WORK  OF  THE  VARI- 
OUS WASHINGTON  EMBASSIES. 

8.  EXT.  COLONEL  BIRD'S  PORCH.  The  col- 
ored mammy  opens  the  door,  lets  in  Conwell, 
takes  his  hat  and  coat  and  shows  him  into  the 
parlor. 

9^  PARLOR  COLONEL  BIRD'S  HOUSE.  The 
colored  mammy  shows  Conwell  in,  the  old 
Colonel  jumps  up  from  his  desk,  and  greets  him 
very  enthusiastically.  His  manner  toward  Con- 
well is  very  different  from  his  manner  toward 
Roland.  Rosalie  then  greets  Conwell  very 
sweetly  but  with  reserve  and  Roland,  giving  him 
a  dirty  look,  greets  him  as  coldly  as  possible. 
The  old  Colonel  now  gives  up  his  work  to  join 
the  group.  Conwell  holds  out  his  little  package 
toward  Rosalie  and  says: 
SP:  "HERE'S  A  LITTLE  THING  I  PICKED  UP 
IN  AN  ANTIQUE  SHOP.  I  THOUGHT 
YOU'D    LIKE    IT." 

Rosalie  puts  down  her  orchids  in  Roland's 
chair.  She  then  takes  the  package,  opens  it  up 
and    takes    out    Roland's   clock.     She    lets    out   a 


60  BREAKING  INTO  THE  MOVIES 

cry  of  surprise  and  delight,  then  turns  to  Conwell 
and  says: 

SP:  "IT'S  LOVELY!  I'VE  ALWAYS  WANTED 
A  CLOCK  LIKE  THAT" 

Roland  looks  at  this,  open-mouthed  and  in 
absolute  astonishment,  sits  down  in  his  chair, 
smashing  the  orchids.  Rosalie  then  shows  the 
clock  to  the  old  Colonel  and  the  two  of  them 
rave  over  it,  forgetting  the  existence  of  Roland, 
■who  finally  comes  to  sufficiently  to  see  that  he's 
sitting  on  something,  gets  up  and  picks  up  the 
mashed  orchids,  looks  at  them  disgustedly.  The 
clock  is  finally  put  in  place  on  the  mantel  and 
Rosalie  comes  back  and  joins  Roland,  who  stands 
looking  ruefully  at  the  flowers  in  his  hand.  He 
dolefully  shows  them  to  her,  and  she,  seeing  he 
is  hurt,  comforts  him,  telHng  him  he's  a  dear 
boy  and  she  loves  the  orchids.  She  takes  them 
from  him  and  tenderly  straightens  them  out, 
but  Roland  is  still  in  the  dumps.  Conwell  is 
now  throwing  a  lot  of  "bull"  at  the  old  Colonel, 
saying: 

SP:  "I  JUST  SAID  TO  THE  SECRETARY  OF 
STATE:  'YOU'RE  NOT  LOOKING  VERY 
WELL,  ELIHU,  I  WISH  YOU'D  LET  MY 
OLD  FRIEND,  COLONEL  BIRD,  TAKE 
SOME  OF  THE  WORK  OFF  YOUR 
HANDS.' " 

He  goes  on  spouting  and  the  old  Colonel  fairly 
eats  it  up.  Finally,  Roland,  unhappy  and  jealous 
and  disgusted  at  Conwell,  gets  up  and  tells  Ro- 
salie he  has  to  go.  Rosalie  begs  him  to  stay  in 
her  sweetest  manner,  but  Roland  takes  another 
look  at  Conwell,  says  no,  he's  got  to  go,  says 
good-by  to  Rosalie  and  says  good-by  to  the 
Colonel  and  Conwell,  and  leaves. 
STREET  EXT.  COL.  BIRD'S  HOUSE.— Roland 
comes  out  and  goes  dolefully  down  the  street. 
(Fade  out.) 

HALLWAY      ROLAND'S      HOUSE.        Roland 
enters,    disheartened.      Hangs    up    hat    and    coat 
and   stick  and   goes   slowly   into   library. 
10.         LIBRARY    ROLAND'S    HOUSE.       (Fade    in.) 
Tom  is  fussing  about  the  room.     Roland  enters 


RED  HOT  ROMANCE  61 

the  room,  terribly  depressed  and  upset  and  starts 
to  tell  Tom  about  the  scene  that  just  took 
place.  He  goes  on  talking  about  Conwell  and 
finally   says: 

SP:  "THE  OLD  MAN  STANDS  FOR  ALL  OF 
CONWELL'S  BUNK  AND  THINKS  HE'S 
GREAT." 

Tom  is  very  sympathetic  and  tells  Roland  he 
ought  to  settle  the  matter.  Roland  agrees  with 
him,  pounds  on  the  table,  and  says: 

SP:  "I  THINK  THE  TIME  HAS  COME  WHEN 
I  OUGHT  TO  TELL  ROSALIE  I  LOVE 
HER!" 

Tom  agrees  with  him,  says  that's  absolutely 
right.  Roland  says  he  knows  it's  right — the  only 
thing  to  do  is  to  come  to  an  understanding  right 
away.  He  then  goes  over  to  the  telephone  and 
calls  a  number,  and  while  he  is  waiting  for  the 
number,  he  goes  on  talking  to  Tom,  telling  him 
just  how  he  is  going  to  settle  things  and  Tom 
encourages  him. 

11.  HALLWAY  COLONEL  BIRD'S  HOUSE. 
Rosalie  comes  dcwn  the  hall  to  the  telephone 
and   answers   it. 

12.  LIBRARY  ROLAND'S  HOUSE.  Roland  is 
still  talking  to  Tom,  telling  him  how  he's  going 
to  lay  down  the  law  when  he  suddenly  hears 
Rosalie's  voice  over  the  'phone.  All  his  belliger- 
ency oozes  out.  He  smiles  and  stammers  fool- 
ishly and  gulps  and  tries  to  get  his  courage  up 
as  if  he  were  going  to  lay  matters  right  before 
her  and  finally  weakens  and  comes  out  with 

SP:         "HOW  ARE  YOU?" 

13.  HALLWAY  COLONEL  BIRD'S  HOUSE. 
Rosalie,  wondering  what  the  devil  he's  asking 
her  that  for  when  he  just  left  her,  frowns  quiz- 
zically  and   says   that   she's   feeling  all   right. 

14.  LIBRARY  ROLAND'S  HOUSE.  Roland  goes 
on  talking  through  the  'phone  in  a  stammering 
embarrassed  sort  of  waj"-,  and  Tom  keeps  telling 
him  to  go  on  and  tell  her  what  he  said  he  was 
going  to.  Roland  tries  to  motion  to  Tom  and 
he  goes  on  stammering  and  stuttering. 

15.  HALLWAY      COLONEL      BIRD'S      HOUSE. 


62  BREAKING  INTO  THE  MOVIES 

Rosalie  still  very  quizzically  listening  to  Roland. 
She  finally  asks  him  what  is  the  matter  with  him. 

16.  LIBRARY  ROLAND'S  HOUSE.  Roland  stam- 
mering into  the  'phone.  Finally  Tom,  utterly 
disgusted,  comes  over  to  the  'phone  and  yells  in 
it: 

SP:         '^HE'S  TRYING  TO  ASK  YOU  TO  MARRY 
HIM,  MISS  ROSALIE!    WILL  YOU?" 

Roland  turns  angrily  to  Tom,  still  holding  the 
receiver  to  his  ear,  and  starts  to  berate  Tom 
soundly,  when  he  suddenly  hears  something  in 
the  telephone  which  stops  him.  He  listens,  over- 
come with  wonderment  and  finally  says: 

SP:         "SAY  THAT  AGAIN  1" 

17.  HALLWAY  COLONEL  BIRD'S  HOUSE. 
Rosalie  at  the  'phone,  laughing,  says: 

SP:         "YES.     OF  COURSE  I  WILLI" 

18.  LIBRARY  ROLAND'S  HOUSE.  Roland  can 
hardly  believe  his  ears,  makes  her  reiterate  it, 
then  turns  to  Tom  in  great  glee  and  says: 

SP:         "IT'S  ALL  RIGHT.     SHE  SAYS  YES." 

He  then  turns  back  to  the  'phone  and  asks 
Rosalie  if  she  really  means  it.  While  he  is  talk- 
ing to  Rosalie,  Tom  goes  over  to  a  heavy  couch, 
pulls  it  out  toward  the  hall.  Roland  still  at  the 
'phone  talking,  turns  and  asks  Tom  what  he  is 
doing.     Tom  still  pulling  the  couch  says: 

SP:    "AH'M  GOING  TO  BUY  YOU  A  ENGAGE- 
MENT RING." 

Roland  smiles  and  nods,  and  suddenly  thinks  of 
the  clock  episode,  stops  Tom,  tells  him  to  wait 
a  minute,  then  turns  toward  the  telephone  and 
says: 

SP:    "WHAT  WOULD  YOU  RATHER  HAVE— A 
RING  OR  A  SOFA?" 

19.  HALLWAY  COLONEL  BIRD'S  HOUSE. 
Rosalie  listening  at  the  'phone  is  utterly  dumb- 
founded at  this  odd  request,  she  asks  him  to 
repeat  it,  then  finally  still  puzzled,  says: 

SP:         "WHY,  A  RING,  OF  COURSE!    YOU  SILLY 
BOY!" 

20.  LIBRARY  ROLAND'S  HOUSE.  Roland  listen- 
ing at  the  'phone,  hears  Rosalie  wants  the  ring, 
turns  to  Tom  and  tells   him  to  go  on   and  hock 


RED  HOT  ROMANCE  63 

the  sofa.  He  then  turns  to  Rosalie,  starts  in  to 
talk  to  her  ecstatically  over  the  'phone,  smiling, 
as  we   fade   out. 

T:  THAT  NIGHT  AT  THE  HANGOUT  OF  THE 

FRINGE  OF  THE  DIPLOMATIC  SET. 
2h  A  wop  RESTAURANT.  (Fade  in.)  This  is 
a  typical  $1.35  Table  d'Hote  joint.  Seated  at 
the  various  tables  are  many  diplomatic  hangers- 
on,  all  of  them  crooked  and  all  looking  out  for 
the  main  chance.  Among  them  is  a  Mexican,  a 
Frenchman,  an  Englishman,  a  German,  a  Russian, 
an  Italian,  a  Chinaman,  a  Jap,  a  Bulgarian,  a 
Hindoo  and  their  women — perhaps  three  or  four 
Americans,  but  the  atmosphere  is  generally  for- 
eign, the  waiters  being  Wops. 

Seated  at  one  table  is  Conwell  alone.  He  is 
eating   spaghetti   and  looking  very   sourly  about. 

T:  ENRICO  DE  CASTANET  OF  BUNKONIA. 

Enrico  is  seated  at  a  table  talking  to  a  very 
attractive  vamp  type  of  a  woman. 

T:  HIS      LADY      FRIEND      (THE      INTERNA- 

TIONAL VAMP  AND  SPY),  COUNTESS 
PULLOFF  DE  PLOTZ. 

The  Countess  is  .listening  very  intently  to 
Enrico.  Enrico  goes  on  talking  very  earnestly, 
and   finally   says: 

SP:    "YOU  SEE,  WE  MUST  HAVE  A  MAN  WHO 
CAN  BE  BOUGHT  BODY  AND  SOUL." 

The  Countess  agrees  with  him,  and  perhaps 
suggests  somebody,  whom  Enrico  says  would 
never  do.  The  Countess  starts  thinking  again, 
and,  as  she  does,  her  ej-es  wander  over  the  room 
and  she  sees  Conwell,  v/ho  has  just  gotten  up, 
paid  his  bill  and  given  the  waiter  a  very  small 
tip,  at  which  the  waiter  shows  his  disgust.  Con- 
well then  turns  to  leaves  the  restaurant,  starts 
down  toward  Enrico  and  the  Countess.  The 
Countess  sees  him,  has  a  sudden  idea  that  he 
would  be  fine  for  the  job  and  points  him  out  to 
Enrico.  At  this  moment,  Conwell  has  stopped 
to  talk  to  someone  at  one  of  the  tables,  Enrico 
looks  him  over  from  head  to  foot,  asks  the  Count- 
ess if  she  is  sure  he  can  be  handled;  she  assures 
him  he  can. 


64  BREAKING  INTO  THE  MOVIES 

SP:  "HE  WORKED  FOR  THE  SHIPPING 
BOARD." 

Enrico  agrees  that  he  looks  like  a  good  bet, 
and  just  at  this  moment  Conwell  comes  past  the 
table,  sees  the  Countess  motion  to  him.  He  comes 
over  to  the  table,  Enrico  rises  and  the  Countess 
introduces  him  saying: 
SP:  "SENOR  DE  CASTANET  IS  MINISTER  OF 
WAR    OF    BUNKONIA." 

Conwell  is  mildly  interested  in  this  fact.  Enrico 
then  asks  Conwell  to  sit  down,  so  he  takes  a  seat, 
and  the  Countess  then  begins  to  get  very  confi- 
dential. She  looks  around  to  see  that  no  one 
is  looking,  then  getting  their  three  heads  together, 
she  says  in  whispered  tones: 
SP:  "WE  ARE  ENGINEERING  A  LITTLE  REV- 
OLUTION DOWN  IN  BUNKONIA." 

Conwell  is  a  little  more  interested  now.  He 
pricks  up  his  ears  a  bit  and  casually  glances 
around  to  make  sure  no  one  is  overhearing,  then 
looks  to  De  Castanet  for  some  information,  and 
De  Castanet,  with  a  quick  glance  around  says 
to  Conwell:  i 

SP:  "THE  AMERICAN  CONSUL  HAS  RE- 
SIGNED AND  A  NEW  ONE  IS  TO  BE 
APPOINTED    NEXT    MONTH." 

Conwell    is    still    more    interested,   asks    Enrico 
where    do    I    come    in?     Enrico    says,    indicating 
Madame: 
SP:         "I  AM  HERE  TO  SEE  THAT  THE  'RIGHT- 
MAN  IS  APPOINTED." 

Conwell  says  "Oh  ho,"  he  sees  and  looks  at 
the  Countess,  who  nods  her  approval.  He  then 
asks  her  where  he  comes  in.  With  more  mys- 
terious looks,  they  get  their  heads  very  closely 
together,  and  the  Countess  says: 
SP:  "WHAT'S  THE  MATTER  WITH  YOU  FOR 
CONSUL?  THE  PICKINGS  ARE  GOING  TO 
BE  FINE  FOR  THE  'RIGHT  MAN.'" 

Conwell  considers  a  moment,  smiles  quizzically 
and  shakes  his  head  and  says: 
SP:         "NO,      I'M      IN      WRONG—THE      SENATE 
WOULDN'T   CONFIRM   ME." 

The   Countess  tries   to   argue   with  him  but  he 


RED  HOT  ROMANCE  65 

is  obdurate  and  says  there's  no  chance  for  him, 
btJt  as  they  are  talking  he  is  suddenly  struck 
■with  a  brilliant  idea.  He  says,  "Wait  a  minute." 
They   all    wait   and    finally  he   speaks    and   says: 

SP:         "I'VE    GOT    JUST    THE    MAN    FOR    YOU!" 
They  are  all  attention  and  eager  to  know  who 
it  is.     He  indicates  that  this  must  be  very  much 
on  the  quiet  and  then  says: 

SP:  "OLD  COLONEL  BIRD— FINE  RECORD- 
EASY  TO  HANDLE— BEEN  WAITING 
THIRTY-FIVE  YEARS  FOR  A  JOB." 

The  Countess  indicates  that  she  knows  old 
Bird  and  tells  Enrico  that  he  is  ideal,  that  they 
couldn't  do  better.  Enrico  asks  if  he  can  be 
handled  when  the  time  comes.  Conwell  swells 
up  and  tells  him  to  leave  that  to  him.  It's 
the  easiest  thing  in  the  world.  Enrico  turns  to 
Madame,  who  backs  up  Conwell  and  Enrico  is 
then  satisfied.  Conwell  then  speaks  up  and 
says: 

SP:  "I'LL  GO  ALONG  AS  SECRETARY  AND 
KEEP  MY  EYE  ON  THE  OLD  BOY." 

They  both  express  their  approval  of  that,  and 
indicate  that  he  will  get  part  of  the  swag.  The 
Countess  leans   over  and   says   rather  tauntingly: 

SP:  "I  SUPPOSE  THE  OLD  BOY'S  DAUGHTER 
WILL  GO  ALONG,  TOO!" 

Conwell  says  he  bets  she  will  and  winks  the 
other  eye.  The  Countess  laughs  and  Enrico 
smiles,  interested  at  the  idea  of  a  romance.  He 
and  the  Countess  exchange  glances.  Conwell 
then  says: 

SP:         "REMEMBER— MUM'S   THE   WORD   UNTIL 

AFTER    THE    APPOINTMENT    IS    MADE" 

They    all    agree    to    that    and    put    their    heads 

together  and  go  on  with  their  scheming.     (Fade 

out.) 

T:  AND  SO   IT  CAME  TO  PASS 

22.  PARLOR  COLONEL  BIRD'S  HOUSE.  (Fade 
in.)  An  old  trunk  in  the  middle  of  the  floor 
and  the  Colonel  and  mammy  are  packing  in  his 
books,  papers,  etc.  The  Colonel  all  full  of  busi- 
ness and  very  busy.  Rosalie  is  helping,  but  is 
very  sad  over  the  matter. 


66  BREAKING  INTO  THE  MOVIES 

23.  EXTERIOR  COLONEL  BIRD'S  HOUSE. 
Roland  rushes  down  the  street  with  a  newspaper 
in  his  hand,  runs  up  the  steps  and  rings  the 
bell. 

24.  PARLOR  COLONEL  BIRD'S  HOUSE.  Ro- 
salie looks  up  quickly,  thinking  that  this  must  be 
Roland.  Mammy  starts  for  the  door  but  Rosalie 
tells  her  she  will  answer  the  bell,  and  she  runs 
out  into  hall. 

25.  HALLWAY  COLONEL  BIRD'S  HOUSE. 
Rosalie  runs  to  the  door  and  opens  it. 

26.  EXTERIOR  COLONEL  BIRD'S  HOUSE. 
Rosalie   opens   the    door,   and    Roland    rushes   in. 

27.  HALLWAY  COLONEL  BIRD'S  HOUSE. 
Roland,  full  of  excitement,  grabs  Rosalie,  shows 
her  the  article  in  the  newspaper. 

INSERT — Article  in  newspaper  stating  that  Colonel  Bird 
has  been  appointed  Consul  of  Bunkonia  and  that 
he  is  to  leave  for  there  immediately  with  his 
daughter  and  his  Secretary,  James  Conwell. 

Roland  asks  Rosalie  if  this  is  true.  Rosalie 
nods  her  head  sadly,  says  that  it  is  and 

SP:  "I  DIDN'T  KNOW  A  THING  ABOUT  IT 
MYSELF  UNTIL  THIS  MORNING." 

Roland  protests  that  she  can't  go  away  and 
leave  him,  and  Rosalie  asks  what  she  can  do 
and  says  that  her  father  has  waited  for  this  all 
his  life  and  insists  on  taking  her  along.  Roland 
asks  where  her  father  is,  she  points  into  parlor, 
and  Roland  tells  her  that  he  will  see  about 
-whether  she  will  be  taken  away  or  not,  and 
full  of  worry,  rushes  into  the  parlor  followed 
by  Rosalie. 

28.  PARLOR  COLONEL  BIRD'S  HOUSE. 
Colonel  Bird  is  helping  mammy  pack  and  Roland 
rushes  in  followed  by  Rosalie.  He  goes  to  the 
Colonel  and  protests  against  taking  his  fiancee 
away  from  him.  He  puts  his  arm  around  Rosalie 
and  says  that  he  wants  to  marry  her  now  and 
keep  her.  The  Colonel  can't  see  this  at  all,  and 
says: 

SP:  "IF  YOU  MARRY  NOW.  HOW  ARE  YOU 
GOING  TO  SUPPORT  HER?" 

Rosalie   turns   to   Roland  and   says   that   is   the 


RED  HOT  ROMANCE  67 

trouble — that  her  father  won't  let  her  stay  there 
and  marry  him  because  he  can't  support  her. 
Roland  then  turns  to  the  Colonel  and  says: 

SP:  "BUT,  COLONEL,  IN  ANOTHER  MONTH 
EVERYTHING  WILL  BE  ALL   RIGHTl" 

Rosalie  seconds  the  motion  and  tries  to  per- 
suade her  father  that  everything  will  be  all  right, 
but  her  father  shakes  his  head,  looks  grimly  at 
Roland  and  says: 

SP:  "THAT'S  WHAT  CLEVELAND  SAID  TO  ME 
IN  '89." 

Roland  looks  discouraged  and  realizes  that  he 
is  up  against  a  hard  proposition  in  the  old 
Colonel,  but  tries  to  explain  that  if  they  can  just 
struggle  along  for  a  month  he  will  have  millions, 
but  the  Colonel  says: 

SP:  "WHEN  YOU  HAVE  YOUR  INHERITANCE 
RIGHT  IN  YOUR  HAND,  COME  DOWN  TO 
BUNKONIA  AND  GET  HER." 

Roland,  much  discouraged,  still  tries  to  argue 
with  the  old  boy,  but  he  cuts  him  off  and  goes 
on  about  his  work.  Roland  then  turns  to  Rosalie, 
who  by  this  time  is  in  tears.  At  the  sight  of 
Rosalie's  tears,  Roland  forgets  his  own  disap- 
pointment, and  putting  his  arm  around  her,  leads 
her  off  to  a  secluded  corner  out  of  sight  of  the 
old  Colonel,  seats  her  and  tries  to  comfort  her, 
putting  his  arm  around  her  and  saying: 

SP:  "THE  FIRST  OF  APRIL  IS  MY  BIRTHDAY. 
I  GET  MY  INHERITANCE  THAT  DAY  AND 
I'LL  START  AT  ONCE  FOR  BUNKONIA." 
At  once  Rosalie  looks  up  at  him  with  her  eyes 
full  of  tears  and  smiles  wanly.  Roland  takes 
her  hand,  wipes  away  her  tears,  kisses  her  and 
says : 

SP:  "I'LL  SEND  YOU  A  CABLE  EVERY 
DAY!" 

At  this  Rosalie  is  greatly  cheered  up,  she  looks 
and  sa3^s:  "Will  you,  dear?"  and  he  assures  her 
that   he   will   and   again   kisses   her.      (Fade   out.) 

T:  THE    AMERICAN    CABLE    COMPANY    DID 

WELL  THAT   MONTH    BUT   LOOK   WHAT 
HAPPENED   TO    ROLAND'S   HOUSE. 
29.         HALLWAY    ROLAND'S    HOUSE.      (Fade    in.) 


68  BREAKING  INTO  THE  MOVIES 

View  of  hall  without  a  piece  of  furniture,  bric-a- 
brac   or  pictures.      (Dissolve   out.) 

30.  LIBRARY  ROLAND'S  HOUSE.  (Dissolve  in.) 
View  of  Library  absolutely  bare.     (Dissolve  out.) 

31.  ROLAND'S  BEDROOM.  (Dissolve  in.)  Bed- 
room has  nothing  in  it  but  one  couch,  one  chair 
and  a  soap  box  on  which  are  Roland's  mirror 
and  toilet  articles. 

Roland  is  asleep  on  the  couch.  Presently 
Briggs  enters,  looks  about  at  the  devastated 
room,  then  shaking  his  head  over  the  laziness 
of  his  master,  goes  over,  wakes  Roland  up  and 
says: 
SP:        "I  WISH  YOU  A  HAPPY  BIRTHDAY,  SIR." 

Roland  wakes  up,  looks  at  him,  rubs  his  eyes, 
realizes  that  his  probation   is  over.     Tom  enters 
smiling   with    a    telegram    in    his    hand  which    he 
gives  to  Roland  who  opens  it  and  reads: 
INSERT— TELEGRAM. 

New  York,  March  31,  1920.  "Arrive  Washing- 
ton four-forty  to-morrow,  April  first,  to  deliver 
inheritance.  HOWE-GREENE." 

Roland  jumps  out  of  bed,  goes  over  and  claps 
Briggs  on  the  back  and  shakes  hands  with  him — 
then  shakes  hands  with  Tom.  Then  makes  Briggs 
and  Tom  shake  hands.  Tells  them  both  he's 
going  to  have  loads  of  money  and  they  will  be 
paid.  Roland  then  goes  over  to  his  soap  box 
on  which  is  a  calendar.  He  looks  at  page  marked 
"March  31."  Tears  it  off  and  looks  at  page 
marked  "April  1." 

He  tears  off  the  page  with  a  flourish  which 
reads  March  31st,  turns  it  over,  and,  sitting  on 
the  floor,  writes  on  the  back  of  it.  Tom  in  the 
meantime  sends  Briggs  for  his  breakfast  and 
gets  out  Roland's  clothes,  brushing  them  with 
great  gusto.  Roland  finishes  writing  and  reads 
what  he  has  written. 
INSERT— WHAT  ROLAND  iS  WRITING. 

"Miss  Rosalie  Bird,  Santo  Grafto,  Bunkonia.  At 
last  the  great  day  is  here.  Lord  Howe-Greene 
arrives  to-day  with  my  inheritance.  Leave  for 
Bunkonia  to-morrow  to  claim  you  as  my  bride. 
Roland." 


RED  HOT  ROMANCE  69 

He  reads  it  and  tells  Tom  to  send  it.  Tom  takes 
the  message.  Scratches  his  head  and  looks 
around  the  room  for  something  to  hock.  Roland 
wants  to  know  why  he's  hesitating,  and  he  tells 
him.      Roland   then   says: 

SP:         "TAKE  THE  COUCH!" 

Tom  looks  at  the  couch  dubiously,  then  looks 
at  Roland  and  says:  "Where  are  you  going  to 
sleep  to-night?"  Roland,  in  an  extravagant 
manner  and  with  a  grand  flourish,  tells  him  to 
take   it  away. 

SP:         "I  WON'T  BE  ABLE  TO  SLEEP  TO-NIGHT 
ANYWAY!" 

Tom  goes  over,  picks  up  the  couch  and  starts 
out  of  the  room  with  it.  At  the  door,  Roland 
stops  him,  picks  up  the  one  remaining  chair, 
hands  it  over  to  him  and  says: 

SP:         "CABLE  HER  SOME  ROSES  WITH  THIS!" 
Tom  takes  the  chair,  starts  for  the  door  when 
he  suddenly  thinks  of  the  fact  that  Lord  Howe- 
Greene  is  due  that  morning,  so  he  stops,  turns  to 
Roland    and    says: 

SP:         WHAT    DAT    LORD    HOWE-GREENE    TO 
SIT    ON    WHEN   HE   COMES?" 

Roland  says  that's  right,  so  he  leaves  the  chair 
and  starts  out  with  the  couch.  Briggs  in  the 
meantime  has  entered  with  Roland's  breakfast. 
Puts  breakfast  on  soap  box.  Roland  tells  him 
to  put  the  chair  down  in  the  hall.  Briggs  doleful. 
Roland  slaps  him  on  the  back — tells  him  to  cheer 
up.  Briggs  goes  out  shaking  his  head  and  Ro- 
land sits  on  chair  and  starts  his  breakfast  all 
smiles.      (Fade   out.) 

T:  THE  NEW  MILLIONAIRE. 

32.  FRONT  OF  ROLAND'S  HOUSE.  (Fade  in.) 
Roland's  taxi  drives  up  and  stops,  followed  by 
Tom's.  Roland  and  Lord  HowejGreene  with 
portfolio  get  out.  Tom  also  gets  out  with  bags. 
Howe-Greene  starts  up  walk.  Tom  stops  Roland 
and  shows  him  three  cents — all  he  has  and  whis- 
pers   to   him,    saying: 

SP:         "HOW  DO  I  PAY  THE  TAXI?" 

Roland  signifying  that  he  can't  be  annoyed  with 
such  little   things,   says  grandiloquently: 


70  BREAKING  INTO  THE  MOVIES 

SP:         "TELL  THEM  TO  WAITl" 

He  follows  Lord  Howe-Greene  up  the  \va\\c 
while  Tom  goes  to  the  taxis  and  tells  them  to  wait. 
Then  he  follows  with  bags. 

33.  RECEPTION  HALL  ROLAND'S  HOUSE. 
It  is  perfectly  bare.  Briggs  is  just  coming  down 
the  stairs  carrying  the  one  chair  that  is  left,  he 
puts  it  down,  looks  around  at  the  bare  hall, 
shakes  his  head  sadly,  dusts  off  the  one  chair, 
then  looks  up  quickly  at  hearing  bell  ring,  goes 
over    to    the    door. 

34.  FRONT  OF  ROLAND'S  HOUSE.  Briggs 
opens  the  door  and  lets  Roland  and  Lord  Howe- 
Greene  in  followed  by  Tom  with  bags. 

35.  HALLWAY  ROLAND'S  HOUSE.  Roland  and 
Lord  Howe-Greene  enter,  followed  by  Tom  and 
Briggs.  Briggs  is  delighted  to  see  the  old  Eng- 
lishman but  is  terribly  chagrined  at  the  condition 
of  the  house.  He  takes  Lord  Howe-Greene's 
coat  and  hat,  and  Roland  engages  Lord  Howe- 
Greene  in  talking,  then  motions  to  Tom  to  get 
the  chair  into  the  library.  Tom  sneaks  the 
chair  around  behind  Lord  Hovv'C-Greene  and  into 
the  library. 

36.  LIBRARY.  Tom  sneaks  the  chair  in,  puts  it 
down    near    the    fireplace. 

37.  HALLWAY  ROLAND'S  HOUSE.  Roland 
noticing  that  Tom  has  the  cliair  placed,  escorts 
Lord  Howe-Greene  into  the  library  with  a  grand 
flourish. 

38.  LIBRARY.  Tom  is  standing  behind  the  chair. 
Lord  Howe-Greene  and  Roland  enter.  Tom  seats 
Lord  Howe-Greene  very  ceremoniously  in  the 
chair.  Lord  Howe-Greene  looks  around  the 
empty  room  and  is  astounded.  He  turns  to 
Roland  and  says:  "I  say,  old  fellow,  the  place  looks' 
rather  beastly  bare?     Where's  the  furniture?" 

Roland  thinks  for  a  moment,  looks  at  Tom;  Tom 
does  some  quick  heavy  thinking  and  finally  says, 
very  graciously: 
SP:  "WE  SENT  THE  FURNITURE  OUT  TO  BE 
CLEANED  IN  HONOR  OF  YOUR  COMING." 
Roland  smiles  in  relief  and  in  approval  of  Tom, 
and  then  says: 


RED  HOT  ROMANCE  71 

SP:  "THE  CLEANERS  ARE  ON  STRIKE  SO 
THEY  DIDN'T  GET  IT  DONE  IN  TIME." 
Lord  Howe-Greene  blandly  accepts  the  explana- 
tion and  thanks  him  for  his  thoughtfulness. 
Roland,  who  has  been  fondling  the  portfolio,  can 
hardly  wait  for  it  to  be  opened,  and  he  gives  it  to 
Lord  Howe-Greene  and  then  goes  and  stands  by 
the  mantel  with  Tom.  Lord  Howe-Greene  fishes 
out  the  papers,  finally  comes  to  the  will  and 
starts  to  read  the  glad  news.  He  reads  for  a 
moment   and   then 

INSERT — "That  providing  said  Roland  Stone  has  car- 
ried out  previous  instructions  of  the  will,  his 
father  provides  as  follows:" 

Roland,  overcome  with  impatience,  begins  to 
get  even  more  interested.  Lord  Howe-Greene 
clears  his   throat  and   goes   on   reading: 

INSERT — "I  bequeath  to  my  son,  Roland  Stone,  one 
unencumbered  position  in  the  Anglo-American 
Insurance  Co.  as  soliciting  agent  with  a  guar- 
antee of  $25.00  per  week." 

Roland  looks  in  astonishment  at  Lord  Howe- 
Greene  as  does  also  Tom.  Lord  Howe-Greene 
clears  his  throat  again  and  goes  on  reading: 

INSERT — "If  at  the  end  of  one  year,  the  business  said 
Roland  Stone  procures  for  the  company  has 
proven  profitable,  the  same  will  be  a  proof  of 
his  good  business  judgment,  and  he  is  then  to 
come  into  possession  of  my  entire  fortune." 

Roland  stares  simply  open-mouthed  in  aston- 
ishment and  disappointment,  while  Tom  can 
hardly  believe  his   ears. 

INSERT — "If  on  the  other  hand,  the  company  at  the 
end  of  one  year  has  suffered  a  loss  through  the 
agency  of  said  Roland  Stone,  my  entire  fortune 
shall  be  given  to  the  support  of  the  Washington 
Home  for  Incurables." 

Roland,  absolutely  dumbfounded  by  the  news, 
stares  at  Lord  Howe-Greene,  then  looks  around 
at   Tom.     Tom  looks   at   Roland   accusingly. 

Roland  then  turns  in  discouragement  and  asks 
Lord  Howe-Greene  if  there's  any  more.  Lord 
Howe-Greene  goes  on  reading: 

INSERT — "It  is  further  provided  that   conditions   under 


72  BREAKING  INTO  THE  MOVIES 

which  said  Roland  Stone  is  to  work,  shall  be 
subject  to  the  approval  of  Lord  Howe-Greene." 
Roland  is  utterly  unable  to  take  all  of  this  in, 
and  he  insists  on  reading  it  himself.  Lord  Howe- 
Greene  hands  it  to  him,  and  Roland  starts  in  to 
read  it  as  though  he  could  hardly  believe  his 
eyes.  Tom  looks  over  his  shoulder,  and,  finally 
disgusted  with  the  whole  proceeding,  he  goes 
over  toward  the  window,  stands  there  dejectedly 
and  looks  out. 

39.  STREET  IN  FRONT  OF  ROLAND'S  HOUSE. 
Flash  of  the  two  taxis  waiting,  taken  from  an 
angle  of  the  house. 

40.  LIBRARY  ROLAND'S  HOUSE.  Tom  receives 
a  terrible  shock  on  seeing  the  taxis  and  realizing 
that  they  can't  pay  them.  He  then  goes  over 
to  Roland,  and  tells  him  that  the  two  taxis  are 
out  there,  eating  their  heads  off.  Roland  looks 
out  toward  the  window,  thinks  about  the  taxis, 
then  looks  over  to  Lord  Howe-Greene,  who  is 
sitting  comfortably  in  the  last  chair,  thinks  a 
moment,  then  goes  over  to  Lord  Howe-Greene, 
excuses  himself,  takes  the  chair  from  under  the 
utterly  flabbergasted  Lord  Howe-Greene,  gives 
it  to  Tom  and  tells  him  to  take  it  out  to  pay  the 
taxis.  Tom  takes  the  chair  and  goes  out,  Lord 
Howe-Greene  looking  after  him  in  wide-eyed 
astonishment.  Roland  then  turns  to  Lord  Howe- 
Greene  and  starts  in  to  protest  about  the  condi- 
tions of  the  will,  but  Lord  Howe-Greene  tells 
him  that  there  is  nothing  that  he  can  do.  He 
takes  the  papers  from  Roland.  Sits  on  window 
sill  (especially  built)  and  starts  in  to  read  the 
long  document  to  Roland.  Roland  trying  to 
follow  Howe-Greene  gets  disgusted,  leans  against 
wall  and  at  length  slips  to  floor  and  sits  there 
disconsolate,  thinking  of  his  rotten  luck  and  of 
the  girl  away  off  with  his  rival.     (Dissolve  out.) 

41.  STUDIO  GARDEN  IN  BUNKONIA.  (Dis- 
solve in.)  Rosalie  sitting  in  a  hammock  with 
Conwell  standing  near  her,  natives  playing 
ukuleles,  fanning  them  and  giving  them  ice  drinks, 
and  Conwell  whispering  sweet  nothings  in  Rosa- 
lie's  ear.     (Dissolve   out.) 


RED  HOT  ROMANCE  73 

42.  LIBRARY  ROLAND'S  HOUSE.  (Dissolve  in.) 
Roland,  sitting  in  the  corner,  very  much  dis- 
tressed by  the  vision  he  has  just  seen. 

Lord  Howe-Greene  is  still  sitting  on  window 
sill  reading  document.  Roland  gives  him  a  dirty 
look,  puts  his  hands  on  his  ears  and  at  length 
jumps  up  and  stalks  out  into  the  hall,  leaving 
Howe-Greene    still    reading. 

43.  HALLWAY— ROLAND'S  HOUSE.  Roland 
rushes  in  from  library,  looks  back  disgusted  at 
Howe-Greene,  who  is  still  reading.  At  this  mo- 
ment Tom  enters  from  street,  goes  to  Roland, 
looks  at  him  despondently,  and  says:  "What  are 
we  going  to  do  now?"  Roland  puts  his  hand  on 
Tom's    shoulder,    and   says   with    great    emphasis: 

SP:  "LOOK  HERE,  TOM,  YOU'VE  GOT  TO 
THINK  OF  SOME  WAY  TO  GET  ME  TO 
ROSALIE!" 

Tom  thinks  a  moment,  finally  his  face  brightens 
and  he  says: 

SP:  "IF  YOU'VE  GOT  TO  SELL  INSURANCE, 
WHY  NOT  SELL  IT  IN  BUNKONIA?" 

Roland  is  delighted  at  this,  and  tells  Tom  he 
knew  he'd  think  up  a  way  out — ^that  they  can 
start  for  Bunkonia  to-morrow  just  as  they  had 
planned.  Tom  says  of  course  they  can.  Roland 
says  they  will  put  it  up  to  Lord  Howe-Greene  at 
once  and  they  go  into  the  library. 

44.  LIBRARY,   ROLAND'S    HOUSE. 

Lord  Howe-Greene  still  sitting  reading.  Ro- 
land and  Tom  enter,  see  him,  and  stop,  both 
disgusted.  Howe-Greene  finishes  his  reading. 
Gets  up  and  goes  to  them — gives  Roland  the 
document,  tells  him  it  is  very  important  for  him 
to  keep  it  safe.  Roland  puts  it  in  his  pocket 
then  turns  to  Howe-Greene  and  says: 
SP:  "I'VE  BEEN  THINKING  THINGS  OVER, 
AND  I'VE  DECIDED  THAT  IF  I  HAVE  TO 
SELL  INSURANCE,  I  WOULD  LIKE  VERY 
MUCH  TO  GET  AWAY  FROM  WASHING- 
TON." 

Lord  Howe-Greene  indicates  that  he  under- 
stands his  feelings  in  the  matter,  thinks  a  moment 
and  says: 


74  BREAKING  INTO  THE  MOVIES 

SP:         "I    HAVE    IT!     YOU    SHALL   TRY    NEW 
YORK." 

Roland  looks  at  him  in  utter  astonishment  and 
says  he  is  surprised  that  Lord  Howe-Greene 
would  suggest  such  a  terrible  place  to  sell  in- 
surance. He  then  turns  to  Tom  and  Tom  agrees 
with  him.  Roland  then  says  to  Lord  Howe- 
Greene, 
SP:  "NEW  YORK  WOULD  NEVER  DO!  IT'S  A 
TERRIBLE    PLACE    FOR   INSfcURANCEl" 

Lord  Howe-Greene  is  interested,  and  wants  to 
know    why,   and    Roland    goes    on    saying: 
SP:         "WHY     THOUSANDS     OF     PEOPLE     ARE 
KILLED  THERE  DAILY!" 

Lord  Howe-Greene  is  tremendously  interested 
and  surprised  and  wants  to  know  how.  Roland 
then  goes  on  to  describe  the  terrible  life  that 
New  Yorkers  lead  and  we  fade  out. 
INSERT — Animated  Cartoon  of  subway  entrance — people 
pushing   their   way  madly   into   the   subway. 

Interior  of  subway  car.  Animated  Cartoon.  Con- 
ductor is  packing  people  in,  smashing  them  in 
so  they  can  hardly  breathe  and  mashing  them 
against  the  wall  so  that  they  collapse.  He  ham- 
mers others  on  the  head  with  mallets  to  get  them 
to  move  back.  Everybody  about  him  is  mashed 
fiat  but  still  he  pushes  more  in.     (Fade  out.) 

Roland   concludes   his   story  about   the   terrible 
life  in  New  York  and  Lord  Howe-Greene  greatly 
surprised  at  this  says: 
SP:         "MY  WORD!" 

Roland    appeals    to    Tom   for   confirmation    and 
Tom  nods  his  head  and  says  that  he  hasn't  heard 
the    half    of    it.      Lord    Howe-Greene    shakes    his 
head,  thinks  a  moment  and  says: 
SP:         "THEN  YOU   SHALL  TRY  CHICAGO!" 

Roland  is  surprised  at  his  suggesting  Chicago, 
shakes   his  head,   and   says: 
SP:         "CHICAGO     IS     WORSE.       PEOPLE     ARE 
BLOWN     TO     DEATH     IN     CHICAGO     BY 
MILLIONS!" 

He  turns  to  Tom  and  Tom  confirms  this  and 
Lord  Howe-Greene,  extremely  puzzled  and  sur- 
prised,  wants   to   know  how.     Roland   then   goes 


RED  HOT  ROMANCE  75 

on  to  describe  a  scene  of  how  people  are  blown  to 
death  in  Chicago,  along  Michigan  Avenue.  (Fade 
out.) 

INSERT— Animated  Cartoon.  (Fade  in.)  Michigan 
Avenue.  People  are  being  blown  down  the  Ave- 
nue and  slammed  up  against  walls  where  they 
mash  out  flat.  Some  of  them  are  blown  over  and 
over  and  some  of  them  are  rolling  like  barrels. 
(Fade  out.) 

Roland  finishes  his  tale  about  Chicago,  and  Tom 
agrees  with  him,  shaking  his  head  and  saying: 
"It  is  indeed  a  terrible  sight  to  see  this  thing 
that  Roland  just  described!"  Lord  Howe-Greene 
shows  great  distress,  and  shakes  his  head  again 
and    exclaims: 

SP:         "MY  WORD!" 

Roland  looks  over  at  Tom  and  gives  him  a 
wink.  Tom  gives  Roland  the  high  sign  and  the 
two  of  them  feel  that  things  are  going  fine  when 
suddenly  Lord  Howe-Greene  scratches  his  head 
and  gets  a  brilliant  idea.  He  then  tells  Roland 
that  he  has  just  the  place  for  him  and  says: 

SP:  "I  HAVE  A  COUSIN— A  REAL  ESTATE 
AGENT  IN  LOS  ANGELES— WHO  WRITES 
ME  THAT  THE  CLIMATE  IS  SO  SALUBRI- 
OUS THAT  EVERY  ONE  LIVES  TO  A  RIPE 
OLD  AGE." 

Roland  looks  at  Lord  Howe-Greene  in  aston- 
ishment, feeling  that  he  has  been  stuck  at  last. 
Lord  Howe-Greene  then  pats  him  on  the  shoul- 
der and   says: 

SP:  "THAT'S  THE  PLACE  FOR  YOU,  MY  BOY!" 
Roland  looks  genuinely  alarmed  and  turns  to 
Tom  for  aid,  but  Tom  himself  is  pretty  much 
stumped  at  this.  Lord  Howe-Greene  feeling 
that  their  problem  has  been  settled,  says  that 
that's  exactly  the  place  and  everything  will  be 
fine.  Roland  stalls,  does  some  quick,  heavy  think- 
ing, finally  gets  an  idea,  and  says:  "Lord  Howe- 
Greene,  that's  exactly  where  you're   wrong." 

SP:  "THE  TROUBLE  OUT  THERE  IS  THAT 
PEOPLE  NEVER  DIE.  THEY  WON'T  BUY 
INSURANCE!" 

Roland    is     rather    pleased     with     himself    for 


76  BREAKING  INTO  THE  MOVIES 

thinking  up  this  and  Tom  congratulates  him  on 
it,  smiling  his  approbation.  Lord  Howe-Greene 
can  hardly  believe  this  angle  of  the  situation, 
says  he  doesn't  think  that's  possible.  Roland, 
realizing  that  he  has  got  to  spike  this  says: 
SP:  "WHY,  I  TRIED  TO  SELL  INSURANCE  ; 
OUT  THERE  ONCE  AND  WHAT  DO  YOU 
THINK   HAPPENED?" 

Lord  Howe-Greene  is  interested  and  wants  to 
know  what  did  happen  to  him.  Tom  looks  rather 
quizzically  at  Roland,  feeling  that  he  is  getting 
out  beyond  his  depth.  Roland  clears  his  throat 
and  starts  in  to  describe  what  happened.  (Fade 
out.) 
45.  FRONT  OF  BUNGALOW  IN  LOS  ANGELES. 
(Fade  in.) 

Three  men  with  white  whiskers  to  their  waist 
are  playing  leap-frog  on  the  lawn.  Roland  comes 
down  the  street,  approaches  one  with  an  insur- 
ance circular  in  his  hand  and  asks  if  he  could 
interest  him  in  some  insurance.  The  old  fellow 
says: 
SP:  "NO,  I  DON'T  WANT  ANY  INSURANCE, 
BUT   YOU   MIGHT   SEE   PA." 

Roland  is  surprised  that  a  man  of  his  age 
should  have  a  father  and  asks  where  he  is.  The 
old  fellow  points  to  the  front  door  of  the  bunga- 
low and  says: 
SP:  "HE'S  HELPING  GRANDPA  CARRY  THE 
PIANO   UP    IN    GRANDMA'S   ROOM." 

Roland  can  hardly  believe  his  ears  at  this  and 
says:     "What?"     The    old   man    nods   and    says: 
SP:         "YES,     GRANDMA     IS     GOING    TO     TAKE 
MUSIC  LESSONS." 

Roland  looks  aghast  at  the  old  man  who  goes 
back  to  his  leap-frog,  and  finally  coming  to, 
goes  up  to  the  house  and  rings  the  bell  while  the 
three  old  boys  continue  their  leap-frog.  Pres- 
ently a  youthful  looking  Jap  with  long,  white 
whiskers  opens  the  door.  Roland  asks  for  the 
father  and  is  shown  in. 
46.  HALLWAY  LOS  ANGELES  BUNGALOW. 
Roland    enters    with    the    Jap    servant.      Pa    and 


RED  HOT  ROMANCE  17 

Grandpa — one  with  whiskers  to  the  knees  and 
one  with  whiskers  to  the  ankles — are  lifting  a 
piano  up  the  stairs.  Roland  approaches  pa  and 
asks  him  if  he  could  interest  him  in  insurance. 
Pa  holds  the  piano  with  one  hand,  with  the  other 
takes  the  young  man's  circular  and  looks  at  it. 
He  then  shakes  his  head  no,  turns  to  grandpa 
and  says:  "Father,  do  you  want  any  insurance?" 
Grandpa  asks  to  see  the  circular  and  Pa  hands  it 
up  to  him.  Grandpa  looks  at  it  a  minute,  then 
looks  at  Roland,  shakes  his  head  and  says: 
SP:  "I  THINK  NOT,  SON.  I  CAN  LOOK  AFTER 
■MY  FAMILY  FOR  A  FEW  YEARS  YET, 
AND  BY  THAT  TIME  THEY'LL  BE  ABLE 
TO  TAKE  CARE  OF  THEMSELVES." 

He  hands  the  circular  back  to  Roland  and  he 
and  Pa  pick  up  the  piano  and  go  on  upstairs, 
Roland  looking  after  them  in  absolute  amaze- 
ment. (Fade  out.) 
47.  LIBRARY,  ROLAND'S  HOUSE.  (Fade  in.) 
Roland  finishes  his  story  about  Los  Angeles. 
Turns  to  Tom  who  confirms  everything  he  has 
said.  Lord  Howe-Greene,  shaking  his  head  in 
amazement  over  these  extraordinary  conditions 
in  America,  says  very  weakly — 
SP:         "MY  WORD"   (in  very  small  type). 

And  Lord  Howe-Greene  is  very  much  distressed. 
He  feels  that  this  case  is  baffling  him.  He  finally 
looks  up  hopelessly  and  asks  Roland  what  they're 
going  to  do.  Roland,  puzzled,  turns  to  Tom 
and  asks  him  what  he  thinks  of  the  situation. 
Tom  thinks  a  moment,  finally  gets  an  idea,  turns 
to  Lord  Howe-Greene  and  says: 
SP:  "IF  YOU  COULD  ONLY  GET  HIM  TO  GO 
DOWN  TO   BUNKONIA." 

Roland  pooh-poohs  this  idea  and  says  no,  he 
never  would,  he  couldn't  go  there  because  it  is 
too  far  away.  But  Tom  goes  on  into  raptures 
about  Bunkonia,  telling  him  what  a  marvelous 
place  it  is  for  business  of  all  kinds,  and  Lord 
Howe-Greene,  glad  of  some  solution  to  his  prob- 
lem, finally  jumps  at  the  idea —  turns  to  Roland 
and  says: 


78  BREAKING  INTO  THE  MOVlES 

SP:  "THAT'S  AN  IDEA!  NEW  COUNTRY- 
VIRGIN  FIELD^IT'S  JUST  THE  PLACE 
FOR  YOU!" 

Roland  thinks  a  minute  as  though  he  had  to 
be  convinced,  but  Lord  Howe-Greene  keeps  on 
begging  him  to  take  a  chance.  Tom  joins  Lord 
Howe-Greene  in  urging  him,  and  finally  Roland 
allows  himself  to  be  persuaded,  decides  that  he 
will  go,  Lord  Howe-Greene  shakes  him  warmly 
by  the  hand  and — (fade  out). 

T:  SANTO     GRAFTO,     CAPITOL     OF     BUNK- 

ONIA,  THE  BEAUTIFUL  LAND  OF  SUN- 
SHINE AND  FLOWERS,  MUSIC  AND 
LAUGHTER,  TAMALES,  TYPHOID  AND 
PTOMAINE. 

48.  EXTERIOR  VIEW  OF  TOWN  OF  SANTO 
GRAFTO.  (Fade  in.)  Showing  natives,  equi- 
pages,  a  few  soldiers,   etc.     (Dissolve   out.) 

49.  PARK  (dissolve  in)  SINGERS,  DANCERS, 
MUSICIANS,  FLOWER  SELLERS,  CHIL- 
DREN, ETC.     (Dissolve  out.) 

T:  KING   CARAMBA  AND   HIS   COUNCIL   EN- 

GAGED IN  THEIR  FAVORITE  INDOOR 
SPORT  OF  RAISING  TAXES  AND  DOWN- 
ING LIQUOR. 

50.  THE  KING'S  COUNCIL  CHAMBER.  Caramba 
sitting  at  the  head  of  the  table  with  three  coun- 
cilors on  his  right  and  three  on  his  left — among 
them  being  Enrico.  Some  servants  in  livery  are 
standing  about.  One  of  the  councilors  has  just 
finished  reading  the  text  of  a  bill  to  raise  the 
taxes.  King  Caramba  is  sound  asleep  with  a 
bottle  in  his  hand.  Enrico,  the  only  sober  one 
in  the  lot,  is  looking  in  a  sinister,  calculating  way 
around  the  table.  The  councilor  who  is  reading 
the  bill  sways  as  he  reads  and  the  paper  jiggles 
in  his  hand. 

51.  INSERT  PAPER  RAISING  TAXES.  The 
councilor  finishes  reading,  puts  paper  in  front  of 
King  and  guides  his  hand  while  he  signs  it. 

INSERT — King's  hand  is  signing  the  paper — it  wanders 
all  over  the  paper  so  that  most  of  the  name  is 
written  on  the  table  with  a  grand  flourish  at  the 
end. 


RED  HOT  ROMANCE  79 

After  signing  the  paper,  the  king  takes  another 
drink.  The  man  takes  the  paper  and  blows  on  it. 
Enrico,  with  a  sinister  smile,  gets  up  and  starts  to 
go.  The  Councilor  takes  the  paper,  waves  it 
aloft  to  the  other  councilors  who  cheer  in  a 
drunken  manner.  They  all  pour  out  another 
bumper,  Enrico  stands  by  the  doorway  in  a 
calculating  manner,  then  smiling  a  satisfied 
smile,  he  turns  on  his  heel  and  leaves.  (Fade 
out.) 
T:  THE     REVOLUTIONISTS     AWAIT     THEIR 

LEADER     AT     THEIR     RENDEZVOUS     IN 
THE  RUE  DE  STILETTO. 

52.  REVOLUTIONISTS'  RENDEZVOUS.  (Fade 
in.)  A  number  of  revolutionary  leaders  are  there, 
including  the  Countess,  Conwell,  the  General  and 
two  men  in  citizen's  clothes.  They  are  discussing 
matters  more  or  less  violently  and  waiting  for 
Enrico. 

53.  RENDEZVOUS  AT  OATE.  Enrico  enters, 
looks  about  stealthily,  sees  that  no  one  is  watch- 
ing and  then  wraps  three  times  on  the  gate.  The 
gate  is  opened  by  a  villainous  servant  and  Enrico 
enters. 

54.  REVOLUTIONISTS'  RENDEZVOUS.  The 
revolutionists  are  still  talking  together  and  they 
see  Enrico  entering.  They  gather  about  him  to 
get  the  news  and  Enrico  says: 

SP:  "THEY  WERE  ALL  DRUNK  TO-NIGHT.  IT 
WILL  SOON  BE  TIME  TO  STRIKE." 

They  all  rejoice  at  this.  Enrico  asks  the  Gen- 
eral about  the  army  and  he  replies: 

SP:  "TWO  HUNDRED  OF  THE  ARMY  ARE 
WITH  US  NOW.  IT  WILL  TAKE  A  HUN- 
DRED PESETAS  TO  WIN  OVER  THE 
OTHER  FIFTY." 

Enrico  is  very  angry  at  this,  and  asks  him  what 
he  means  by  a  hundred  pesetas,  and  is  very  sore 
at  the  tremendous  cost  at  buying  these  men. 
The  Countess  stops  his  raving,  putting  her  finger 
over  his  lips,  goes  into  her  stocking,  takes  out 
the  money  and  gives  the  General  two  bills,  which 
amount  to  more  than  he  has  asked  for.  He  then 
turns    to    Conwell    and    starts    in    to    talk.      The 


80  BREAKING  INTO  THE  MOVIES 

General  puts  the  money  in  his  pocket  but  Enrico 
notices  him  and  says: 
SP:         "HERE!  HERE!     GIVE  US  THE  CHANGE!" 

Reluctantly  the  General  digs  it  up,  starts  to 
pass  it  over  to  the  Countess  but  Enrico  stops 
him  before  the  Countess  notices,  grabs  the  money 
and  puts  it  in  his  own  pocket.  Enrico  then 
crosses  over  to  Conwell  and  says: 
SP:  "ARE  YOU  SURE  WE  CAN  HANDLE  OLD 
BIRD  WHEN  WE'RE  READY?" 

Conwell  tells   him  it's  the  easiest  thing   in  the 
world,  that  the  old  man  has  got  to  do  just  what 
he  says  and  winds  up  with: 
SP:         "DIDN'T  I  GET  HIM  THIS  JOB?" 

They   all   seem   satisfied   with   this   and   go    on 
plotting.     (Fade  out.) 
T:  ON  THE  EDGE  OF  THIS  POLITICAL  VOL- 

CANO SITS  OUR  OLD  FRIEND,  COLONEL 
BIRD,  AT  PEACE  WITH  ALL  THE  WORLD 
IN   THE  FULLNESS  OF  HIS   IGNORANCE. 

55.  COLONEL  BIRD'S  ROOM  IN  THE  CONSU- 
LATE. (Dissolve  in.)  Colonel  Bird  is  sitting 
at  his  desk  reading  a  political  book.  Mammy  is 
straightening  room  and  dusting.  Rosalie  enters 
dressed  for  the  street.  She  goes  to  the  Colonel, 
looks  over  his  shoulder,  tells  him  that  he  works 
too  hard,  makes  him  promise  he  will  get  some 
rest  and  kisses  him  good-by  and  goes  out. 

56.  CONWELL'S  ROOM  IN  THE  CONSULATE. 
Conwell  is  sitting  at  his  desk  very  busily  but 
rather  slyly  making  out  a  report.  Rosalie  comes 
from  her  father's  room,  says  good  morning  to 
Conwell  and  starts  to  pass  through.  Conwell  im- 
mediately jumps  to  his  feet,  comes  to  her,  and 
stops  her,  admiring  her  dress,  etc.  Rosalie  shows 
by  her  attitude  that  she  has  begun  to  fear  this 
man.  She  starts  to  pass  him  but  he  takes  her  by 
the  hand,  restrains  her  and  says: 

SP:  "HOW  MUCH  LONGER  ARE  YOU  GOING 
TO  KEEP  ME  WAITING?" 

Rosalie  is  embarrassed  and  doesn't  know  what 
to  say.  She  tells  him  that  she  doesn't  care  about 
him  in  that  way  and  he  finally  says: 

SP:  "DON'T  YOU  THINK  YOU  OWE  ME  SOME- 


RED  HOT  ROMANCE  81 

THING    AFTER     ALL     I'VE     DONE     FOR 
YOUR  FATHER?" 

She  expresses  her  gratitude  for  the  help  he  has 
been  to  her  father  but  doesn't  quite  see  why 
she  should  marry  him  for  that  reason.  Conwell 
is  getting  impatient  and  finally  says: 
SP:  "YOUR  FATHER  AS  GOOD  AS  PROMISED 
THAT  YOU'D  MARRY  ME." 

Rosalie  is  surprised  and  incredulous,  says  she 
doesn't  believe  it  and  turns  and  goes  to  the  door. 
Conwell  tries  to  restrain  her  but  doesn't  succeed. 
Rosalie  calls  in  to  her  father  and  asks  if  he 
will  come  in. 

57.  COLONEL  BIRD'S  ROOM  AT  CONSULATE. 
Colonel  Bird  puts  down  his  book  and  goes  in  to 
Conwell's   room. 

58.  CONWELL'S  ROOM  AT  CONSULATE.  Ro- 
salie looks  up  at  her  father  almost  in  tears  and 
asks  if  he  promised  that  she  marry  Conwell. 
Colonel  Bird  berates  Conwell  for  suggesting  such 
a  thing,  tells  her  she  shall  marry  the  man  of 
her  choice.  Conwell  protests  that  Bird  is  in- 
debted to  him  for  his  job,  Colonel  Bird  straightens 
himself   up   with    great   dignity   and   says: 

SP:         "WELL,    SIR,    DIDN'T    I    MAKE    YOU    MY 
SECRETARY?" 

Conwell  looks  at  him  as  much  as  to  say — 
"You  poor  old  simp — just  wait."  Colonel  Bird 
takes  Rosalie  to  the  door,  kisses  her  good-by  and 
she  goes  out.  He  then  turns  to  Conwell  and 
tells  him  to  stop  annoying  his  daughter. 

59.  EXTERIOR  CONSULATE.  Rosalie  comes  out 
and  goes  down  the  street  toward  the  station. 

60.  CONWELL'S  ROOM  AT  CONSULATE.  Colo- 
nel Bird  is  still  laying  down  the  law  to  Conwell 
who  nods  his  head,  and  Colonel  Bird  goes  back 
to  his  own  room.  Conwell  looks  after  him  in 
a  menacing  way,  then  shakes  his  fist  after  him 
and  sup-gesting  that  he  will  get  even  with  him 
yet.  He  then  gets  his  hat  and  goes  out.  (Fade 
out.) 

T: 

61.  RAILWAY  STATION  AT  SANTO  GRAFTO. 
Station   master  is   there,  baggage   man,   three   or 


82  BREAKING  INTO  THE  MOVIES 

four  natives,  some  kids  and  several  pretty  native 
girls.  Rosalie  also  is  waiting.  The  train  comes 
in,  a  couple  of  soldiers  get  off  and  greet  the  girls. 
Two  natives  get  off  and  then  Tom  and  Roland 
get  off.  Rosalie  rushes  to  them.  Roland  kisses 
her,  she  greets  Tom  and  leads  them  off. 

62.  BACK  OF  SANTO  GRAFTO  STATION. 
Carriage  waiting  with  native  driver.  Rosalie 
enters  with  Roland  and  Tom,  they  get  into  the 
carriage  and  drive  off.     (Fade  out.) 

T:  THE   HOTEL   DEL  MOSQUITO. 

63.  FRONT  OF  HOTEL.  (Fade  in.)  There  are 
several  tables  in  front  of  the  hotel  and  also 
several  booths  and  a  sign  over  the  entrance.  Sev- 
eral people  are  sitting  at  the  tables  drinking. 
At  one  table  sits  the  Countess  and  Enrico.  Con- 
well  enters  and  joins  them,  rather  sore  over  his 
rebuff  by  Rosalie.  They  ask  him  why  so  grouchy 
and  he  tells  them.  They  give  him  the  laugh  but 
Enrico  slaps  him  on  the  back  and  tells  him  she 
will  come  around  all  right.  Waiters  are  going 
in  and  out.  A  pretty  girl  is  selling  flowers,  a 
couple  of  musicians  are  playing  guitars.  Carriage 
drives  up  with  Rosalie,  Roland  and  Tom.  Tom 
and  Roland  get  out,  a  native  porter  comes  from 
the  hotel  and  takes  their  bags  into  the  hotel  fol- 
lowed by  Tom,  while  Roland  stops  to  speak  to 
Rosalie.  Conwell  looks  up,  sees  Roland  and  is 
very  much  disturbed.  He  calls  the  attention  of  his 
two  friends  to  Roland  and  tells  them  who  he  is 
and  they  all  look  searchingly  at  him.  Roland  says 
a  very  affectionate  good-by  to   Rosalie  and  says: 

SP:         "MAY      I      COME     TO     SEE     YOU     THIS 
EVENING?" 

Rosalie  tells  him  that  he  may,  bids  him  good-by 
and  he  watches  her  drive  away,  sighs  and  turns 
and  goes  into  hotel.  Conwell  half  hides  so  that 
Roland  won't  see  him.  After  he  is  well  out  of 
sight  Conwell  starts  to  grumble  at  his  ill  luck  at 
having  this  fellow  come  down  here.  Enrico  pats 
him  on  the  back,  whispers  in  his  ear  and  says: 

SP:         "WE    CAN   PUT   HIAl    OUT   OF   THE   WAY 
DURING  THE  REVOLUTION." 


RED  HOT  ROMANCE  83 

The  Countess  nods  that  this  will  be  easy  but 
Conwell  looks  doubtful,  shakes  his  head  and  says: 
SP-  "NO,  IT  WOULD  BE  DANGEROUS  FOR 
US— HE'S  TOO  WELL  KNOWN  IN  WASH- 
INGTON." 

Conwell  shows  his  anger  and  chagrin  at  the 
turn  of  affairs.  Enrico  shrugs  his  shoulders  but 
the  Countess  starts  in  to  think  of  some  way  out. 

64.  HALLWAY  OUTSIDE  ROLAND'S  APART- 
MENT. Porter  enters  with  Roland  and  Tom, 
opens  door  and  they  enter  Roland's  room. 

65.  ROLAND'S  APARTMENT  IN  THE  HOTEL. 
The  porter  shows  Tom  and  Roland  in.  Roland 
is  quite  pleased  with  the  place,  tips  the  porter  gen- 
erously; the  porter  leaves,  followed  by  Tom  and 
his  bag, 

66.  FRONT  OF  HOTEL.  Conwell  is  still  cursing 
his  luck.  Enrico  is  sympathetic  but  helpless.  The 
Countess  is  thinking  heavily  and  finally  gets  an 
idea.  She  leans  over,  pats  Conwell  on  the  hand 
and  says: 

SP:  "THERE'S  SOMETHING  ON  EVERY  MAN 
IF  YOU  CAN  ONLY  FIND  IT.  LEAVE  IT 
TO  ME.  PLL  FIND  SOMETHING  TO  HANG 
ON  HIM." 

Enrico  approves  of  this,  Conwell  is  slightly 
interested  and  the  Countess  goes  on  explaining 
that  she  has  tackled  many  a  difficult  proposition 
and  won  out.    Just  to  leave  it  to  her.     (Fade  out.) 

T:  EVENING. 

67.  BEAUTIFUL  COURTYARD  OR  GARDEN 
AT  THE   CONSULATE. 

Roland,  dinner  coat,  and  Rosalie,  evening  dress, 
and  the  Colonel  are  there.  Roland  has  just 
finished  telling  the  story  of  his  dad's  directions 
regarding  his  fortune  and  he  finishes  up  by  saying 
to  Rosalie: 
SP:  "SO  WE'VE  GOT  TO  WAIT  ANOTHER 
YEAR,   ROSALIE." 

She  takes  his  hand  and  says  she  doesn't  mind 
at  all,  she  knows  he'll  be  a  great  success.  The 
old  Colonel  comes  to  him,  takes  him  by  the 
hand  and  says: 


84'         BREAKING  INTO  THE  MOVIES 

SP:  "I'M  GLAD  SOMETHING  HAS  SET  YOU  TO 
WORK,  BUT  YOU'VE  GOT  TO  WIN  TO 
GET    ROSALIE." 

Roland  thanks  the  Colonel,  tells  him  he  knows 
it  and  that  he's  going  to  make  good.  The  Colonel 
rather  brusquely  tells  him  he  hopes  he  does  and 
then  leaves.  Rosalie  runs  to  Roland,  tells  him 
she    knows    he's    going   to   ruake    good. 

68.  HALLWAY  OUTSIDE  ROLAND'S  APART- 
MENT. The  Countess  enters,  looks  around 
stealthily,  goes  to  the  door,  tries  it,  finds  it 
locked,  takes  a  hairpin  from  her  hair,  unlocks 
the  door  with  it,  looks  around  and  enters. 

69.  ROLAND'S  ROOM  IN  HOTEL.  The  Countess 
in  dark  evening  dress  enters  and  closes  the  door. 
Begins  to  rummage  around  among  Roland's 
things  in  his  wardrobe  trunk.  She  finally  un- 
covers a  lot  of  blank  insurance  policies.  She 
shows  great  interest  in  the  discovery  of  the 
papers,  as  papers  are  one  of  her  main  stock  in 
trade.     She  starts  feverishly  to  examine  them. 

INSERT— HANDFUL   OF  INSURANCE   BLANKS. 

The  Countess  looks  at  them  in  disgust,  puts 
them  back  where  she  found  them  and  goes  on 
hunting. 

70.  GARDEN  OF  CONSULATE.  Another  very 
beautiful  shot  with  Rosalie  and  Roland  standing 
or   sitting  on   a  bench  planning  their  future. 

71.  ROLAND'S  BEDROOM  IN  HOTEL.  The 
Countess  still  rummaging  around.  Down  in  the 
bottom  drawer  of  the  trunk,  she  discovers  a  copy 
of  Roland's  father's  instructions  which  have  been 
given  him  by  Lord  Howe-Greene.  She  pounces 
on  this  and  reads  it. 

INSERT — If  at  the  end  of  one  year  the  business  said 
Roland  Stone  procures  for  the  company  has 
proven  profitable,  the  same  will  be  proof  of  his 
good  business  judgment  and  he  is  then  to  come 
into   possession   of  my    entire   fortune. 

Countess    ponders    over    this    a    moment,    then 
reads    next   paragraph: 
INSERT — Part  of  statement  as  follows: 

"If,    on    the    other   hand,    the    company    at    the 
end  of  one  year  has  suffered  a  loss  through  the 


RED  HOT  ROMANCE  85 

agency  of  said  Roland  Stone,  my  entire  fortune 
shall  be  given  to  the  support  of  the  Washington 
Home  for  Incurables." 

The  Countess  gloats  over  this  discovery,  care- 
fully replaces  everything  just  as  she  found  it, 
conceals  the  paper  in  her  dress  and  stealthily 
leaves  the  room. 

72.  EXTERIOR  OF  CONSULATE.  Roland  is  just 
bidding  Rosalie  good-night.  She  is  expressing 
her  good  wishes  for  his  success.  Roland  looks 
out  toward  the  view  of  Bunkonia,  then  turns  to 
Rosalie   and   says: 

SP:  "WHY,  IN  A  VIRGIN  FIELD  LIKE  THIS,  I 
CAN'T  HELP  BUT  MAKE  THE  COMPANY 
MONEY." 

Rosalie  is  just  as  certain  as  he  is  about  it. 
He  then  goes  on  telling  her  that  in  just  one 
little  year  he  will  be  claiming  her.  Rosalie  is 
delighted.  Roland  timidly  kisses  her,  says  good- 
night and  leaves.  Rosalie  looks  after  him  and 
sighs. 

73.  CAFE  OF  THE  HOTEL.  Enrico  and  Conwell 
sitting  at  a  table  smoking  and  drinking.  Conwell 
is  quite  nervous  and  irritable.  Enrico  is  trying 
to  jolly  higi  up.  The  Countess  enters  in  a  very 
mysterious  way,  sits  beside  them  and  tells  them 
with  much  glee  but  in  great  secretiveness  that 
she  has  great  news.  She  stealthily  draws  the 
paper   from  her   dress  and   shows  it   to   them. 

INSERT— SAME  CLAUSE  AS  BEFORE  WITH  THE 

COUNTESS'  FINGER  POINTING  TO  IT. 
Conwell  and  Enrico  are  puzzled  over  this,  and 

Conwell  asks  the  Countess  how  it  concerns  him. 

The    Covmtess    looks    furtively    about    and    says: 
SP:         "DON'T  YOU  SEE— IF  HE  LOSES  MONEY 

FOR    THE     COMPANY,     HE    LOSES    THE 

FORTUNE  AND  THE  GIRL!" 
Enrico  and  Conwell  consider  this  for  a  moment, 

and    finally    realize    the    truth   of  it   but   ask   the 

Countess  what  she  has  in  her  bean.   The  Countess 

looks    furtively    about    and    says: 
SP:         "WE'LL   HAVE   HIM    INSURE   THE   LIVES 

OF  THE   KING  AND   COUNCIL." 

Enrico  and  Conwell  look  at  her,  then  at  each 


86  BREAKING  INTO  THE  MOVIES 

other  and  ask  what  good  that  will  do.  The 
Countess  looks  at  them  in  a  surprised  way  and 
says: 

SP:  "AREN'T  THEY  ALL  TO  BE  KILLED  IN 
OUR  REVOLUTION?" 

Slowly  the  force  of  this  breaks  over  the  minds 
of  Enrico  and  Conwell,  their  faces  become 
wreathed  in  smiles,  at  length  both  laugh  boister- 
ously. Conwell  takes  the  paper  and  looks  at  it 
again,  then  rises,  takes  his  glass,  holds  it  out 
toward  the   Countess  and  says: 

SP:  "TO  THE  WOMEN— BLESS  THEM.  WHAT 
WOULD  WE  DO  WITHOUT  THEM?" 

He  and  Enrico  raise  their  glasses  and  drink 
to  the  Countess  who  smiles  and  blushes.  (Fade 
out.) 

T:  THE   NEXT   MORNING— THE    PLANT. 

74.  FRONT  OF  THE  HOTEL.     (Fade  in.)  Roland 

is  sitting  at  a  table  in  the  f.g.  having  his  break- 
fast. Conwell  and  Enrico  come  to  the  hotel 
doorway  and  look  out.  They  finally  spot  Roland. 
Conwell  then  gives  instructions  to  Enrico  as  to 
what  to  do.  He  then  goes  out  toward  Roland 
while  Enrico  backs  into  the  hotel  doorway  and 
waits.  Conwell  goes  over  to  Roland,  slaps  him 
on  the  back,  greets  him  heartily.  Roland  rises, 
rather  embarrassed,  Conwell  shakes  his  hand 
cordially  and  sits  beside  him.  Enrico  in  the 
doorway  watches  with  a  sinister  smile.  Conwell 
asks  Roland  what  he  is  doing  down  in  Bunkonia. 
Roland  says: 

SP:  "I'VE  COME  DOWN  TO  SELL  INSUR- 
ANCE." 

Conwell  is  interested  in  this  and  Roland  tells 
him  in  a  few  words  what  he  wants  to  do.  Con- 
well  is   quite   interested  and  says: 

SP:  "PERHAPS  I  CAN  GIVE  YOU  A  BOOST.  I 
KNOW  ALL  THE  BIG  GUNS  DOWN 
HERE." 

Roland  is  mildly  interested  but  not  overly 
enthusiastic  as  he  knows  something  of  Conwell's 
boasting  proclivities.  However  he  thanks  him. 
Conwell  offers  Roland  a  cigarette  and  while  Ro- 


RED  HOT  ROMANCE  87 

land  is  taking  it,  Conwell  quickly  signals  to 
Enrico.  Enrico  sees  the  signal  and  walks  down 
to  the  front  of  the  hotel.  Conwell  looks  up 
sharply,  pretending  he  has  just  seen  Enrico, 
points  him  out  to  Roland,  who  looks  also,  and 
Conwell  then  speaks,  saying: 

SP:  "THAT'S  ENRICO  DE  CASTANET,  SECRE- 
TARY OF  WAR,  AND  A  GREAT  PAL  OF 
KING  CARAMBA." 

Roland  is  quite  impressed.  Conwell  says  he 
will  bring  him  over  and  gets  up  and  goes  over 
toward  Enrico.  Enrico  turns,  sees  him,  greets 
him  very  enthusiastically,  saying,  "Ah,  my 
friend,"  shakes  his  hand  and  raises  his  hat  at 
the  same  time  Conwell  is  doing  it.  Conwell 
then  asks  him  if  he  won't  come  over  and  meet 
his  friend,  at  the  same  time  giving  Enrico  the 
wink.  Enrico  says  he  will  be  pleased  and  they 
both  go  over  to  Roland's  table.  Conwell  in- 
troduces Enrico  to  Roland.  Enrico  again 
raises  his  hat.  They  all  sit,  Roland  orders 
drinks  and  Conwell  briefly  tells  Enrico  about 
Roland's  business.  Enrico  says  he  is  inter- 
ested in  any  friend  of  Conwell's  and  after  a 
few  words  of  explanation  from  Roland,  Enrico 
says   to    Conwell: 

SP:  "THERE'S  A  MEETING  OF  THE  COUNCIL 
TO-NIGHT.  WHY  NOT  BRING  YOUR 
FRIEND?  I'LL  HAVE  HIM  MEET  THE 
KING." 

Roland  is  quite  overcome  by  all  this  kindness, 
and  Conwell  says :  "That  is  exactly  the  thing  to 
do."  Conwell  takes  his  drink,  holds  it  up  and 
says: 

SP:  "HERE'S  HOPING  YOU  INSURE  THE 
LIVES  OF  THE  KING  AND  ALL  HIS 
COUNCIL." 

They  all  drink  to  Roland's  success.  Roland  is 
overcome  by  their  kindness.     (Fade  out.) 

T:  AT  THE   COUNCIL  MEETING. 

75.  KING  CARAMBA'S  COUNCIL  ROOM.  (Fade 
in.)  King  Caramba  and  his  councilors  are  there, 
boozing  as  usual.     Conwell  is  standing  making  a 


88  BREAKING  INTO  THE  MOVIES 

speech  to  them  which  they  are  not  listening  to 
very  intently.  Conwell  is  telling  them  what  a 
great   thing  insurance   is,  and   says: 

SP:  "RIGHT  AT  YOUR  VERY  DOOR,  GENTLE- 
MEN, IS  A  YOUNG  YANKEE  WHO  IS 
ABLE  TO  SELL  YOU  THIS  WONDERFUL 
LIFE  INSURANCE." 

The  councilors  listen  in  a  drunken  way,  all 
except  old  Senor  Frijole,  who  is  very  sore  and 
grouchy  and  signifies  that  he  wants  nothing  to 
do  with  this  Yankee  and  his  business.  Enrico 
rises  to  speak,  telling  them  what  a  wonderful 
thing  insurance   is,   and   then   he   says: 

SP:  "WHY,  DO  YOU  REALIZE,  GENTLEMEN, 
THAT  WE  GET  THOUSANDS  OF  PESETAS 
FOR  A   MERE   FEW   HUNDRED?" 

He  turns  to  Conwell  and  asks  him  if  he  is  right. 
Conwell  assures  him  he  is  right,  and  then  con- 
tinues his  speech.  At  this  the  Councilors  begin 
to  take  very  much  more  interest.  They  signify 
that  this  miust  be  very  good  after  all,  all  except 
old  Senor  Frijole,  who  is  sitting  next  to  Enrico. 
He  pulls  Enrico's  sleeve  and  says: 

SP:  "BUT  YOU  HAVE  TO  DIE  TO  GET  IT— 
DON'T  YOU?" 

Enrico  gives  him  a  quick,  dirty  look,  tells  him 
to  shut  up,  which  squelches  him  somewhat,  but 
he  goes  on  mumbling  to  himself.  Conwell  goes 
on  talking,  saying  that  this  opportunity  should 
not  be  overlooked.  He  sits  down.  Enrico  says 
he  thinks  it  is  a  fine  idea  and  says: 

SP:         "I'LL   TAKE    10,000   PESETAS    MYSELF." 

At  this  the  councilors  are  more  interested 
than  ever  as  they  know  Enrico  is  not  the  type 
to  be  done.  Old  Frijole  goes  on  grumbling  into 
his  glass  of  liquor  saying  he  will  have  nothing 
to  do  with  it.  Conwell  goes  over  to  the  door, 
opens  it  and  goes  out. 
76.  HALLWAY  IN  PALACE.  Roland  sitting  on  a 
settee.  Conwell  comes  from  Council  Room. 
Roland  with  application  in  his  hand  jumps  up 
nervously  and  meets  him.  Conwell  tells  him  it 
is  all  right  and  they  go  into  Council  Room. 
n.         COUNCIL   ROOM.     Conwell   brings    Roland    in 


RED  HOT  ROMANCE  89 

and  introduces  him  to  the  councilors  who  greet 
him,  with  drunken  enthusiasm,  while  Conwell 
stands  in  the  background  with  a  menacing  leer. 
Roland  is  very  much  pleased,  but  bashful,  over- 
come by  his  luck.  Enrico,  with  a  grand  flourish, 
asks  Roland  for  an  application  which  Roland 
gives  him,  and  he  signs  his  own  application  with 
a  grand  flourish  and  hands  it  over  to  Roland 
as  if  to  say — "There,  what  more  assurance  do 
you  want  that  this  is  a  good  thin^?"  At  this 
the  other  councilors  all  reach  out  drunkenly  and 
grab  applications,  Roland  writing  in  the  amounts, 
and  all  of  them  signing  the  applications  drunk- 
enly. Enrico  and  Conwell  exchange  triumphant 
looks,  but  old  Seiior  Frijole  shows  his  disgust 
for  the  entire  affair.  He  finally  goes  up  and 
tries  to  keep  the  King  from  signing  his  applica- 
tion, but  the  King  gives  him  a  push,  he  staggers 
back  into  his  chair,  mumbling  and  grumbling 
and  warning  them  against  Yankee  tricks.  By  this 
time,  Roland  has  most  of  the  applications  signed, 
Conwell  comes  up,  pats  him  on  the  back  and 
congratulates    him.      (Fade    out.) 

T:  ABOUT  A  WEEK  LATER.     (Fade  in.) 

78.  COLONEL  BIRD'S  ROOM  IN  CONSULATE. 
Rosalie  in  simple  evening  dress  is  standing  by 
the  window.  Roland,  in  a  blue  coat  and  flannel 
trousers,  rushes  in  and  Rosalie  runs  to  him.  He 
tells  her  he  has  a  surprise  for  her.  She  is  very 
much  interested  and  wants  to  know  what  it  is. 
He   says: 

SP:  "I'VE  INSURED  KING  CARAMBA  AND  HIS 
COUNCILORS  FOR  NEARLY  A  HUNDRED 
THOUSAND  DOLLARS." 

Rosalie  is  amazed  and  delighted  at  this  good 
news.      Roland    says: 

SP:  "I  JUST  DELIVERED  THE  POLICIES  AND 
COLLECTED    THE    PREMIUAIS." 

Rosalie  is  in  ecstasies  and  throws  her  arm 
around  him  and  kisses  him,  much  to  his  embar- 
rassment, although  he  is  also  grfeatly  pleased. 
Roland    says: 

SP:  "I  WANT  YOU  TO  COME  OUT  TO  HELP 
CELEBRATE  MY  GOOD  FORTUNE." 


90  BREAKING  INTO  THE  MOVIES 

She    is    delighted,   picks    up    a    tulle    scarf   and 
goes  out  with  Roland. 

79.  CONWELL'S  ROOM  IN  CONSULATE.  Con- 
well  is  standing  at  desk  as  Roland  and  Rosalie 
enter.  Conwell  turns  to  them  smiling.  Roland 
stops  and  tells  Rosalie  Conwell's  influence  got 
him  his  big  clients.  He  goes  to  Conwell  and 
thanks  him,  shaking  his  hand.  Rosalie  is  sur- 
prised and  puzzled  that  Conwell  should  help 
Roland.  Roland  gets  Rosalie  and  they  go  out 
'bidding  Conwell  good-night.  Conwell  looks 
after    them   leering. 

80.  EXTERIOR  CONSULATE.  Roland  and  Ro- 
salie come  out  of  the  Consulate  and  leave  in  the 
direction    of    the    hotel. 

81.  REVOLUTIONISTS'  RENDEZVOUS.  The 
Countess,  three  other  Revolutionists  and  about 
thirty  soldiers  are  there.  They  are  all  excited 
and    talking    among   themselves. 

82.  GATEWAY  OF  RENDEZVOUS.  General  en- 
ters hurriedly  and  knocks  three  times — gate  opens 
and  he  quickly  enters. 

83.  REVOLUTIONISTS'  RENDEZVOUS.  Revo- 
lutionists talking  and  awaiting  somebody.  The 
general  enters  and  joins  group.  He  looks  about 
and    says: 

SP:  "ENRICO  HAS  JUST  LEFT  THE  COUNCIL 
MEETING.  AS  SOON  AS  HE  COMES  WE 
STRIKE." 

He  then  leaves  and  goes  to  soldiers — the  others 
discuss  this  news  excitedly. 

84.  GATEWAY  OF  RENDEZVOUS.  A  group  of 
six  or  eight  soldiers,  led  by  a  sergeant,  approach 
skulkingly — the  sergeant  knocks  at  the  gate, 
which   opens   and   the   soldiers   all   sneak  in. 

85.  EXTERIOR  CONSULATE.  Colonel  enters 
from  opposite  direction  taken  by  Roland  and 
Rosalie  and  enters  consulate.  Four  guards  look 
out  from  hiding  places. 

86.  CAFE  IN  FRONT  OF  THE  HOTEL 
(NIGHT).  Several  people  at  tables.  Roland 
and  Rosalie  enter  and  go  into  one  of  the  little 
booths  and  sit  down — waiter  comes  and  takes 
their  order— they  are  very  happy. 


RED  HOT  ROMANCE  91 

87.  EXTERIOR  CONSULATE.  Enrico  enters, 
whistles  softly,  and  four  guards  sneak  out  of 
hiding  places  and  come  to  him.  He  asks  if  Colo- 
nel Bird  is  home.  They  tell  him  he  has  just 
gone  in.  He  tells  them  to  wait  in  the  shadow 
and  they  go  into  the  shadow  and  Enrico,  looking 
about  cautiously,  goes  to  the  porch  and  knocks 
three   times. 

88.  CONWELL'S  ROOM  IN  CONSULATE.  Con- 
well  at  desk  hears  knock,  glances  toward  the 
colonel's  room  and  goes  to  the  door,  opens  it. 
Enrico  quickly  enters.  Conwell  closes  the  door. 
Enrico  asks  him  if  the  Colonel  is  in.  He  smiles 
and  says  yes.  Enrico  tells  him  he  has  come  to  fix 
old  Bird.  Conwell  says:  "Easy — he'll  do  any- 
thing you  say,"  and  tells  him  to  wait  a  moment 
and  goes  into  the  Colonel's  room. 

89.  COLONEL'S  ROOM.  Colonel  at  his  desk. 
Conwell  enters,  tells  him  that  Enrico  de  Castanet 
wishes  to  see  him.  Colonel  somewhat  surprised 
and  a  little  bit  flattered,  swells  up  a  bit,  tells  Con- 
well to  show  Senor  de  Castanet  in.  Conwell  opens 
the  door  and  de  Castanet  enters.  The  Colonel 
greets  him  and  they  sit  down  and  Conwell  goes  out 
and  they  begin  to  talk,  Enrico  telling  him  that 
they  are  going  to  pull  a  revolution  that  night 
and  put  King  Caramba  and  his  council  out  of 
the  way. 

90.  CAFE  IN  FRONT  OF  HOTEL.  Roland  and 
Rosalie  still  dining,  having  a  grand  time.  A  couple 
of  revolutionists  enter  and  sit  in  the  booth  next 
to  theirs. 

91.  COLONEL'S  ROOM.  Enrico  is  talking  very 
earnestly  to  the   Colonel.     At  length  he  says: 

SP:  "NOW  IF  YOU  WILL  ADVISE  THE  AMERI- 
CAN PRESIDENT  TO  RECOGNIZE  OUR 
NEW  GOVERNMENT  TO-MORROW,  IT 
WILL  MEAN  ALMOST  ANYTHING  YOU 
WISH  TO  ASK." 

The  old  Colonel  is  puzzled  and  vaguely  alarrhed 
at  this,  doesn't  quite  get  it.     Asks  Enrico: 

SP:         "ARE   YOU   OFFERING   ME   A   BRIBE?" 

Enrico    shrugs    his    shoulders   and    says    if   that 
is  what  he  chooses  to  call  it.       The  old   Colonel 


92  BREAKING  INTO  THE  MOVIES 

becomes  very  angry,  rises  at  his  desk,  begins  to 
lay  down  the   law  to   Enrico  and   says: 

SP:  "YOU  WOULD  HAVE  ME  BARTER  THE 
HONOR  OF  MY  COUNTRY?  ARE  YOU 
AWARE,  SIR,  THAT  YOU  ARE  DEALING 
WITH  A  LOYAL  AMERICAN  CITIZEN!" 

He  bangs  the  table,  stretches  himself  to  his 
full  height.  Enrico  rises  and  tries  to  argue  with 
him,  but  the  Colonel  brushes  him  away  and 
grandiloquently  points  to  American   flag. 

SP:  "THAT,  SIR,  IS  THE  GREATEST   FLAG   IN 

THE    WORLD,    AND    NO    ACT    OF    MINE 
SHALL  EVER  STAIN  IT." 

At  the  finish  of  the  speech,  the  old  Colonel, 
with  a  grand  flourish,  orders  Enrico  out  of  the 
room.  Enrico  backs  out,  protesting  all  the  way. 
The  old  man  kicking  him  out  at  the  finish. 

92.  CONWELL'S  OFFICE.  Conwell  waiting  ex- 
pectantly. Enrico  lands  in  the  room,  to  which  he 
has  been  catapulted  by  the  old  Colonel's  foot. 
Conwell  comes   to  him,  much  perturbed. 

93.  COL.  BIRD'S  ROOM  AT  THE  CONSULATE. 
Old  Colonel  slams  the  door  and  -walks  up  and 
down    in    excitement. 

94.  CONWELL'S  ROOM.  Enrico  angrily  telling 
Conwell  what  happened  in  the  other  room.  Con- 
well very  sore  and  disgusted  at  the  old  man, 
says: 

SP:  "HAVE  YOUR  GUARD  KIDNAP  HIM  AND 
LOCK  HIM  UP  AND  I'LL  TAKE  CHARGE 
OF  THE   CONSULATE." 

Enrico  angrily  approves  of  this  and  rushes 
outdoors. 

95.  COLONEL'S  ROOM  AT  CONSULATE.  Colo- 
nel at  his  desk,  rapidly  writing  a  telegram, 
presses  button. 

96.  CONWELL'S  ROOM  AT  CONSULATE.  Con- 
well, looking  out,  hears  the  button,  goes  into  the 
Colonel's    room. 

97.  COLONEL'S  ROOM  AT  CONSULATE.  Colo- 
nel finishing  telegram,  rises.  Conwell  comes  to 
him.  Colonel  indignantly  tells  him  in  a  very 
few  words  what  has  happened,  points  to  the  flag, 
hammers    his    chest   in   great    indignation,    shows 


RED  HOT  ROMANCE  93 

him   a   telegram   which   he    is   sending.     Conwell 
reads    telegram: 
INSERT— TELEGRAM. 

TO  CAPT.  HENRY  HALYARD,  U.  S.  BAT- 
TLESHIP UTAH,  PORTO  PUNKO,  BUNK- 
ONIA. 
REVOLUTION  THREATENED  HERE  TO- 
NIGHT. SEND  MARINES  AT  ONCE  TO 
PROTECT  AMERICAN  INTERESTS. 

BIRD, 
CONSUL. 
Conwell  smiles  at  this.  The  Colonel  orders  him 
to    send    it    at    once    and    Conwell,    still    smiling, 
starts   to   leave   the   room,   when  the   door  opens 
and  in  bursts   Enrico  with  his  four  guards.     He 
tells  them  to  arrest  the   Colonel,  which  they  do, 
but   the    old  boy   puts   up   a   fight.      They  finally 
overcome   him  and   hold   him  prisoner.     He   ap- 
peals  to   Conwell,   who   only   laughs   at   him  and 
tears  up  the  telegram  and  throws  it  in  his  face, 
shakes  his  finger  at  the  old  man  and   saj's: 
SP:         "WE  SHALL  SEE  NOW  W^HO  IS  THE  BOSS 
AROUND   HERE." 

The    old    Colonel    is   annoyed   and   tries    to   get 
at    Conwell    but    the  guards    hold   him.      Conwell 
smiles   and  says: 
SP:         "WE  SHALL  SEE  NOW  WHETHER  I  GET 
YOUR  DAUGHTER  OR  NOT." 

He  tells  the  guard  to  rush  the  old  man  out, 
which  they  do,  followed  by  Conwell  and  Enrico. 

98.  CONWELL'S  ROOM  IN  CONSULATE.  The 
guards  rush  the  old  Colonel  through  the  room 
and  out,  followed  by  Conwell  and  Enrico. 

99.  FRONT  OF  THE  CONSULATE.  Guards  rush 
the  old  Colonel  out  followed  by  Enrico  and  Con- 
well.    Enrico  tells  the  guard: 

SP:         "LOCK     HIM     UP     IN     THE     DUNGEONS 
UNDER  THE  PALACE." 

He  scribbles  on  a  card  that  he  gives  to  one 
of  the  guards.  The  guards  rush  the  Colonel  off 
toward  the  palace  and  Enrico  and  Conwell  go 
in   the  opposite  direction,  toward  the   rendezvous. 

100.  CAFE   IN   FRONT   OF  HOTEL.      (Long  shot) 

showing  the  two  booths,  with  Roland  and  Rosalie 


94  BREAKING  INTO  THE  MOVIES 

in   one   and  the   two   revolutionists   in   the    other. 

CLOSE  UP  OF  TABLE  WITH  ROLAND  AND  RO- 
SALIE. They  are  talking  animatedly.  Roland 
has  a  little  notebook  in  his  hand,  which  he  shows 
to  Rosalie  and  says: 

SP:  "THINK  WHAT  THIS  MEANS  TO  US,  RO- 
SALIE!    I    CAN'T   FAIL   NOW." 

Rosalie  is  delighted  at  the  wonder  of  this — 
takes  his  hand  and  they  go  on  talking  of  their 
plans. 

CLOSE  UP  OF  THE  TABLE  WITH  THE  REVOLU- 
TIONISTS. A  third  revolutionist  officer  comes 
in  hurriedly,  sits  down,  looks  about  and  says: 

SP:         "THE    HOUR   TO    STRIKE    IS   AT    HAND." 
The    other    revolutionists    listen. 

CLOSE  UP  OF  ROLAND  AND  ROSALIE.  They  are 
pricking    up   their   ears. 

CLOSE  UP  OF  REVOLUTIONISTS'  TABLE.  One 
asks  the  newcomer  what  is  going  to  happen 
and  he   says: 

SP:         "THE   REVOLUTION   STARTS  TO-NIGHT." 
The  other  two  gloat  over  this. 

CLOSE  UP — Roland  and  Rosalie  listen,  their  alarm 
growing,  Roland  climbs  on  chair  and  looks  into 
next  booth. 

OTHER  BOOTH— Roland  looking  over  top,  frightened. 
The  revolutionists  go  on  talking,  the  newcomer 
says : 

SP:         "KING     CARAMBA     AND     HIS     COUNCIL 
WILL  BE  KILLED  FIRST." 
They  go  on  talking  together. 

CLOSE  UP,  ROLAND  AND  ROSALIE— Roland  is  dis- 
mayed at  what  he  has  heard.  Rosalie  starts  to 
speak  and  he  tells  her  to  keep  quiet  and  he  listens 
over   the   partition. 

CLOSE  UP,  THREE  REVOLUTIONISTS— They  are 
talking,  call  waiter,  pay  him  and  get  up  and 
leave    hurriedly.      Roland    ducks    down. 

CLOSE  UP  OF  ROLAND— Finally  he  realizes  what  is 
to  happen,  and  that  it  means  ruin  and  he  turns 
to  Rosalie  and  says: 

SP:         "THEY  ARE  GOING  TO  KILL  EVERY  ONE 
I'VE   INSURED." 
They    are    both    terribly    alarmed    and    realize 


RED  HOT  ROMANCE  95 

that  this  means  ruin  for  their  hopes.    They  don't 
know  what  to  do,  at  length   RosaHe  says: 

SP:  "WE  MUST  HAVE  FATHER  SEND  FOR 
HELP." 

Roland  in  his  terror  agrees  to  this — he  throws 
a  bill  on  the  table,  she  grabs  him  by  the  hand  and 
they  rush  out. 

101,.  EXTERIOR  REVOLUTIONISTS'  RENDEZ- 
VOUS— Enrico  and  Conwell  enter.  Enrico 
knocks  on  door  three  times,  the  door  is  opened 
and   they   enter. 

102.  REVOLUTIONISTS'  RENDEZVOUS.  Enrico 
and  Conwell  enter  and  join  Countess  and  General 
and  tell  them  the  time  has  come  to  strike — that 
old  Bird  refused  Enrico's  request,  that  they 
chucked  him  in  prison  and  Conwell  now  is  boss 
of  the   Consulate. 

103.  DUNGEONS  UNDER  PALACE.  Four  guards 
rush  in  Colonel  Bird  and  chuck  him  in  one  of 
the  cells,  lock  the  door  and  rush  out. 

104.  EXTERIOR  CONSULATE.  Roland  and  Ro- 
salie run  in  and  rush  into  the  Consulate. 

105.  GONWELL'S  ROOM  AT  CONSULATE.  Ro- 
land and  Rosalie  rush  through. 

106.  COL.  BIRD'S  ROOM  AT  CONSULATE.  Ro- 
land and  Rosalie  rush  in — see  the  overturned 
furniture  and  realize  something  has  happened. 
Mammy  enters  from  back  door.  Rosalie  runs  to 
her  and  asks  what  has  happened  and  she  doesn't 
know.  Rosalie  asks  Mammy  where  her  father  is. 
Mammy  says  she  left  him  here.  Rosalie  is  terri- 
fied. Rosalie  and  the  old  servant  rush  out.  Ro- 
salie upstairs  and  Mammy  to  kitchen  to  look  for 
the  Colonel.  Roland  picks  up  the  bits  of  the 
telegram  from  the  floor  and  pieces  them  together. 

Rosalie  comes  back  into  the  room  and  the  old 
servant  enters  and  shakes  her  head.     Rosalie   in 
terror,   says: 
SP:         "FATHER  IS  NOT  HERE." 

Roland  thinks  a  moment,  realizes  that  they  have 
taken   him   away,   shows   his    anger   at    this,    calls 
Rosalie   to  him,  finishes  piecing  the  telegram  to- 
gether  and   then    reads   it. 
INSERT   OF  TELEGRAM   PIECED  TOGETHER. 


96  BREAKING  INTO  THE  MOVIES 

Rosalie  having  read   the  telegram  shows  hope 
in  her  face  and  says  to  Roland: 
SP:         "YOU    MUST    SEND   THAT    MESSAGE    AT 
ONCE." 

Roland  jumps  at  this  and  gathers  up  the  pieces 
in  his  hand,  starts  to  go,  then  thinks  of  the 
girl,  stops  and  asks  her  what  she  will  do  in  the 
meantime.  She  says  never  to  mind,  but  to  go  on, 
old  Mammy  will  stay  with  her.  Roland  is  reluc- 
tant to  go,  but  Rosalie  goes  to  the  drawer  of  the 
desk,  takes  out  her  father's  old  army  revolver, 
and  then  goes  to  Roland  and  says: 
SP:  "I  AM  AN  AMERICAN  GIRL  AND  CAN 
TAKE  CARE  OF  MYSELF." 

She  tells  him  to  go  and  forces  him  out  toward 
the  door.  He  takes  her  in  his  arms  and  kisses 
her  and  rushes  out.  The  old  mammy  comes  to 
her  and  puts  her  arm  about  her. 

107.  FRONT  OF  CONSULATE— Roland  rushes  out 
and  down  the  street  toward  the  station. 

108.  REVOLUTIONISTS'  RENDEZVOUS.  The 
Countess,  the  General  and  a  few  other  officers, 
about  100  soldiers  and  a  major  are  there.  Enrico 
is  giving  his  instructions  to  the  various  people. 
Conwell  and  Enrico  enter.  Conwell  tells  Coun- 
tess, General  and  others  what  has  happened  and 
tells  them  what  to   do.     Conwell  says: 

SP:  "LOOK  HERE,  WHAT  ABOUT  THE  GIRL? 
I  WANT  HER  ABDUCTED  AND  KEPT  FOR 
ME   IN  THE   PALACE." 

Enrico  says  that's  all  right — tells  the  general 
to  put  a  guard  at  the  disposal  of  Conwell.  Con- 
well and  the  general  leave — go  to  soldiers.  En- 
rico tells  Countess  to  look  after  the  girl  when 
she  gets  to  the  palace.  Countess  says  she  will 
and  Enrico  goes  on  talking  to  others. 

About  100  soldiers  are  there.  Conwell  and 
General  enter.  General  selects  a  guard  of  about 
three  men.  Tells  them  to  obey  Conwell's  orders 
and  Conwell  leaves  with  the  three  men.  The 
General  then  turns  to  the  rest  of  the  soldiers 
instructing  them  as  to  what  they  are  to  do. 

109.  EXTERIOR  R.  R.  STATION.  Roland  runs  in 
and  enters  station. 


RED  HOT  ROMANCE  97 

110.  INTERIOR  R.  R.  STATION  AND  TELE- 
GRAPH OFFICE.  Roland  rushes  in  and  tells 
station  master  he  wants  to  send  a  message.  Starts 
to  write  it.  Station  master  stops  him — says  he 
cannot  send  message.  Roland  asks  why.  Station 
master  points  to  telegraph  instrument. 

CLOSE  UP  OF  TELEGRAPH  INSTRUMENT 
SMASHED. 

Roland  asks  who  did  that.    Station  master  says: 
SP:         "THE  REVOLUTIONISTS." 

Roland   is   nonplused   for   the   m.oment — rushes 
out  of  the  door,  followed  by  the  station  master. 

111.  EXTERIOR  R.  R.  STATION.  Roland  rushes 
out  followed  by  station  master.  Roland  runs  in 
the  direction  of  the  hotel.  Station  master  looks 
after  him  and  bites  his  thumb  at  him,  then  goes 
back  into  station. 

112.  EXTERIOR  WINDOW  SIDE  OF  CONSU- 
LATE. Conwell  sneaks  in  with  his  three  soldiers 
and  pecks  in  window  and  sees — 

113.  COL.  BIRD'S  ROOM  IN  CONSULATE— Ro- 
salie sitting  tense  holding  gun  and  watching 
door.     Mammy  beside  her  standing. 

114.  EXTERIOR  WINDOW  SIDE  OF  CONSU- 
LATE. Conwell  shows  his  chagrin  at  the  fact 
of  Rosalie's  having  a  gun,  thinks  a  moment,  then 
tells  his  guard  to  keep  very  quiet  and  follow 
him.  He  sneaks  out  toward  front  of  house,  fol- 
lowed by  guard  very  quietly. 

115.  CAFE  IN  FRONT  OF  HOTEL.  Tom  is  sitting 
in  one  of  the  booths  shooting  craps  with  a 
native  civilian.  Roland  rushes  in,  tells  Tom  about 
the    revolution,   says: 

SP:  "WE'VE  GOT  TO  SAVE  ALL  THOSE  GINKS 
I  INSURED." 

He  grabs  Tom  and  they  rush  out  of  the  cafe 
toward  the  palace  leaving  the  native  flat. 

118.  CONWELL'S  ROOM  IN  CONSULATE.     Con- 

well, with  his  three  guards,  enter  stealthily.  He 
places  the  three  guards  against  the  wall  on  each 
side  of  the  door  leading  to  the  Colonel's  room 
and  he  then  knocks  on  the  door. 

117.  COLONEL'S    ROOM    IN    CONSULATE.     Ro- 

salie, terrified,  says:     "Who  is  it?" 


98  BREAKING  INTO  THE  MOVIES 

118.  CONWELL'S  ROOM  IN  CONSULATE.  Con- 
well   says,    "It's    I — Jim    Conwell." 

119.  COLONEL'S  ROOM  IN  CONSULATE.  Ro- 
salie, greatly  relieved,  lowers  gun  and  says,  "come 
in."  Conwell  enters,  leaving  the  door  open.  He 
smiles  ingratiatingly  and  comes  forward.  She 
asks  him  if  he  knows  where  her  father  is.  He 
doesn't  know,  but  pats  her  reassuringly  on  the 
shoulder  and  gently  takes  the  revolver  from  her. 
In  this  position  he  whistles.  The  girl  looks  up 
quickly  and  jumps  to  her  feet  in  alarm,  but  before 
she  can  make  any  move,  the  three  guards  rush 
in  and  seize  her.     Conwell  steps  to  her  and  says: 

SP:  "DON'T  BE  ALARMED,  THESE  GENTLE- 
MEN WILL  ESCORT  YOU  TO  THE  KING'S 
PALACE  WHERE  OUR  WEDDING  WILL 
TAKE  PLACE  TO-MORROW  MORNING." 
Rosalie  is  horrified  at  this  and  starts  to  struggle, 
but  the  men  hold  her  and  start  to  take  her  out  of 
the  room.  The  old  Mammy  grabs  a  big  book 
and  lambasts  Conwell  over  the  head,  stunning 
him  for  a  moment.  She  then  runs  for  the  guards, 
jumping  on  their  backs  like  a  cat.  By  this  time 
Conwell  has  regained  his  feet,  grabs  the  colored 
servant  and  bangs  her  on  the  head  with  some- 
thing heavy,  then  chucks  her  over  into  a  corner 
and  he  follovv's  the  guards  and  Rosalie  out 
through  a  back  door. 

120.  BACK  DOOR  OF  CONSULATE.  Conwell 
rushes  out  followed  by  the  three  guards  dragging 
Rosalie.  They  start  toward  palace  but  Conwell 
stops  them  and  says: 

SP:  "WE'LL  KEEP  HER  IN  OUR  RENDEZVOUS 
UNTIL  ENRICO  CAPTURES  THE  PAL- 
ACE." 

They  all   exit  in  the   opposite   direction. 

121.  REVOLUTIONISTS'  RENDEZVOUS.  Enrico 
is  there  with  the  General,  Major  and  Countess. 
Enrico  is  haranguing  the  soldiers,  giving  them 
final  instructions.  They  all  cheer.  Enrico  calls 
Major  to  him  and  tells  him  to  look  after  the 
Countess  and  after  they  have  captured  the  palace 
to  bring  her  there.     Major  salutes  and  steps  aside 


RED  HOT  ROMANCE  99 

with    Countess.     Enrico   goes   on  haranguing   the 
soldiers  and  at  length  says: 
SP:         "AND    REMEMBER    THERE    IS    A    PRICE 
OF  THIRTY  PESETAS  ON  THE  HEAD  OF 
THE  KING!" 

They  all   cheer.     Enrico  draws  his  sword  and 
says: 
SP:         "ON  TO  THE  PALACE!" 

He    gives    orders    to    fall    in,    which    they    do, 

then  forward  march.     They  all  march  out  led  by 

Enrico,    the    Countess    and    Major    looking   after 

them. 

T:  THIRTY  PESETAS'  WORTH  OF  ROYALTY. 

122.  KING'S  BEDCHAMBER.  Councilors  standing 
by  bed  all  salute  drunkenly.  Two  lackeys  carry 
the  King  (who  is  dressed  in  a  long  white  night 
gown  and  night  cap  and  hugging  a  bottle  of 
booze  to  his  chest)  and  chuck  him  on  the  bed, 
cover  him  up  and  stand.  The  king  dozes  off 
into  a  drunken  stupor.  Councilors  salute  and 
stagger   out  toward   Council  Room   (followed  by 

123.  HALLWAY  IN  PALACE.  Councilors  stagger 
out  of  King's  bedroom  across  hall  and  into 
Council    Room. 

124.  COUNCIL  ROOM  IN  PALACE.  Councilors 
stagger  in  and  sit  at  table  and  begin  boozing — 
drinking  to: 

SP:         "GOOD  REST  TO  HIS  MAJESTY." 
They  all  down  a  drink  and  sit  down. 

125.  FRONT  DOOR  OF  PALACE.  Two  royal 
guards  on  duty  (uniforms  elaborate  and  different 
from  those  of  the  army).  Roland  and  Tom  rush 
up  and  demand  admittance  and  are  refused.  Ro- 
land says  it  is  very  important  to  see  the  king, 
but  they  won't  let  him  in.  Tom  wants  to  wallop 
them  on  the  nose  and  go  in,  but  is  restrained  by 
their  guns  and  finally  he  and  Roland  leave  in 
disgust  and  go  down  to  the  edge  of  the  grounds, 
then  look  back  and  see  the  guards  are  not  look- 
ing and  beat  it  around  to  the  side  of  the  palace. 

126.  STREET.  Enrico,  the  General  and  soldiers 
march  through  toward  palace. 


100        BREAKING  INTO  THE  MOVIES 

127.  WALL    OF    PALACE    (outside).      Roland    and 

Tom  run  in  and  scale  wall. 

128.  WALL  OF  PALACE  (inside).  Roland  and  Tom 
jump  down  and  run  toward  back  of  palace. 

129.  BACK  OF  PALACE.  Roland  and  Tom  run  in. 
Tom  leans  down  and  makes  a  stepping  stone  for 
Roland,  who  jumps  from  his  back  to  window, 
pushes  it  open  and  crawls  in.  He  then  pulls  Tom 
up  after  him. 

130.  HALLWAY  OF  PALACE  LOOKING  TO- 
WARD THE  BACK.  Roland  and  Tom  crawl 
in  the  window,  quickly  look  about,  rush  into  the 
Council  Room. 

131.  COUNCIL  CHAMBER.  Councilors  all  drunk. 
Tom  and  Roland  rush  in  from  hall,  tell  them 
there  is  a  revolution  on  and  they've  got  to  beat 
it  to  save  their  hides  as  the  soldiers  and  revo- 
lutionists are  coming.  They  all  get  up  in  a 
drunken,  stupid  sort  of  way — don't  take  it  in. 
Two  lackeys  rush  out  the  window  at  back.  Ro- 
land   demands    of   one   of   the    councilors: 

SP:         "WHERE   IS  THE   KING?" 

The  councilor,  half  soused,  points  across  the 
hall.  Roland  and  Tom  stir  up  the  councilors 
and  drive  them  out  into  the  hall.  One  of  them  is 
too  far  gone  to  walk.  Roland  pitches  him  over 
to  Tom  who  throws  him  over  his  shoulder  and 
carries  him  out.  Little  Frijole,  the  grouch,  is  the 
soberest  of  the  lot  and  realizes  the  situation  and 
tries  to  follow  along,  but  Roland  gives  him  a 
shove  and  lands  him  in  a  chair,  saying: 

SP:         "GET   AWAY!     YOU'RE   NOT   INSURED." 

They  all  go  out  into  the  hall,  Frijole  getting  up 
and  following.  As  he  does  so,  he  draws  an  old 
revolver  out  of  his  pocket. 

132.  HALLWAY  IN  THE  PALACE.  They  all  cross 
the  hallway  to  the  king's  bedroom — Tom  carrying 
his  councilor,  Frijole  following,  waving  his  re- 
volver. 

133.  KING'S  BEDROOM.  They  all  rush  in-^Tom 
carrying  the  same  councilor  and  Frijole  waving 
his  revolver.  Roland  rushes  to  the  king's  bed 
and  wakes  him  up  while  the  councilors  stagger 
about  stupidly,  bumping  into  each  other  and  not 


RED  HOT  ROMANCE  101 

yet  fully  realizing  what's  up.  Tom  drops  his 
councilor  on  a  couch  or  floor.  Roland  wakes 
the  king  up — pulls  him  out  of  bed — tells  him 
that  the  revolutionists  are  coming  and  he  has 
got  to  get  out.  The  King  is  very  stupid  from 
drink  and  doesn't  take  it  in.  Roland  shakes  him 
and  tries  to  make  him  understand. 

134.  STREET  CORNER  NEARER  THE  PALACE. 
Enrico,  the  General  and  army  march  through. 

135.  KING'S  BEDROOM.  Roland,  trying  to  make 
old  King  Caramba  understand,  says  to  Tom: 

SP:         "GET  SOME  WATER." 

Tom  leaves.     Roland  goes  on  shaking  the  King. 

CLOSE  UP  OF  LITTLE  PRIVATE  SIDEBOARD  OR 
BAR  in  corner  of  room.  Tom  rushes  in,  looks 
for  water  but  there  is  none.     He  turns  and  says: 

SP:         "EVERYTHING  HERE  BUT  WATAH!" 

Roland  says  to  bring  a  bottle  of  something. 
Tom  takes  a  bottle  of  champagne,  knocks  neck 
off  of  it  and  goes   toward  bed. 

CLOSE  UP  BY  BED— Roland  still  trying  to  bring  King 
to.  Tom  enters  with  champagne.  Roland  takes 
it  and  souses  it  in  King's  face — King  falls  back 
on  bed.  Roland  and  Tom  pull  him  up  again  to 
his  feet.  King  licks  champagne  from  his  face 
with  tongue.  They  punch,  pummel  and  slap  him 
and  finally  bring  him  to.  Roland  tells  him  about 
the  revolution — that  they  must  get  out  of  the 
palace  and  hide.  The  King  looks  around  and 
sees  the  various  councilors.  Finally  realizes  what 
is  up — asks  where  the  Revolutionists  are. 

136.  FRONT  OF  PALACE.  Two  royal  guards  sleep- 
ing on  ground.  Enrico,  General  and  soldiers 
march  in.  Royal  guards  are  overpowered  and 
Enrico,  General  and  soldiers  begin  to  bang  on 
door. 

137.  KING'S  BEDROOM  IN  PALACE.  Roland 
tells  him  they  are  rushing  on  the  Palace.  The 
old  King  is  scared  blue — begins  to  shake  and 
tremble.  Roland  asks  him  if  he  doesn't  know 
some  way  to  get  out.  Finally  the  old  King  comes 
to  his  senses  enough  to  remember  a  trap  door 
under  the  flagging  of  the  floor.  He  takes  Roland 
over  to  the  place  in  the  floor  and  points  down  there. 


102        BREAKING  INTO  THE  MOVIES 

Roland  and  Tom  look  and  see  nothing  but  flag- 
ging.    The  old   King  keeps  pointing   and   poking 
with    his    toe,    says: 
SP:         "STAIRWAY  UNDER  THERE." 

Finally  Roland  taps  the  flagging  with  his  heel. 
Then  he  and  Tom  get  down  on  their  knees  and 
try  to  pull  up  the  stone.  It  won't  come.  They 
look   up  at   the   King.     He   says,  yes,   that's   the 

SP:  "TUNNEL  —  LEADS  TO  EL  JUGGO 
PRISON." 

Tom  then  gets  a  big  jack-knife  from  his  pocket, 
opens  it  and  begins  to  pry  up  the  flagging.  The 
old  King  claps  his  hands  and  nods  his  head. 
Roland  and  Tom  continue  pulling  up  the  flagging 
from  the  floor. 

138.  FRONT  OF  THE  PALACE.  Enrico,  the  Gen- 
eral and  soldiers  banging  on  the  door. 

139.  THE  KING'S  BEDROOM.  Roland  finishes 
pulling  up  the  last  stone.  Tom  chucks  the  stones 
under  the  bed.  Roland  then  raises  the  trap  door, 
starts  to   shove  the  Councilors   down. 

140.  FRONT  OF  THE  PALACE.  Soldiers  still 
banging    on    the    door    trying   to    break   it    down. 

141.  THE  KING'S  BEDCHAMBER.  Roland  is 
shooing  the  King  and  Councilors  down  the  stair- 
way. Frijole  keeps  butting  in  and  Roland  pushing 
him  back. 

CLOSE  UP  OF  THE  STAIRWAY.  Frijole  is  trying  to 
push  himself  down,  but  Roland  holds  him  back 
and  says: 

SP:  "I  TOLD  YOU  TO  KEEP  OUT  OF  THIS— 
YOU'RE  NOT  INSURED." 

But  Frijole  insists  that  he  shall  go  and  raises 
his  revolver  at  Roland.  Roland  ducks  and  knocks 
the  revolver  out  of  his  hand.  Tom  picks  it  up. 
Roland  pushes  Frijole  over  to  Tom,  who  picks 
up  the  little  man  and  drops  him  out  of  the 
window. 

142.  FRONT  OF  PALACE.  Soldiers  still  banging 
on  the  door — door  breaks  through  and  they  enter. 

143.  KING'S  BEDCHAMBER  IN  PALACE.  Tom 
runs  to  door  to  hall,  opens  it  a  crack  and  peeks 
out. 


RED  HOT  ROMANCE  103 

144.  HALLWAY  OF  PALACE  (front  end).  Soldiers 
rush  in.  Enrico  is  holding  his  soldiers  at  the 
door,  through  which  they  have  broken,  telling 
them    just    where    to    go. 

145.  KING'S  BEDCHAMBER.  Tom  calls  to  Roland 
to  look.     Roland  comes  to  the  door  and  looks. 

146.  HALLWAY  IN  PALACE.  Enrico  giving  in- 
structions to  his  men. 

147.  KING'S  BEDROOM.  Tom  aims  revolver  at 
Enrico.      Roland    stops   him  and   says: 

SP:  "FOR  GOD'S  SAKE  DON'T  KILL  HIM. 
HE'S  INSURED  FOR  TEN  THOUSAND 
DOLLARS." 

He    grabs    Tom,   closes   the    door   and   locks  it, 
pulls  Tom  away. 

148.  HALLWAY.  Enrico,  with  a  flourish,  leads  his 
men   down   the  hall   toward  the   King's  bedroom. 

149.  KING'S  BEDROOM.  Tom  picks  up  his  coun- 
cilor and  starts  down  through  trap  with  him. 
Roland  quickly  removing  traces  of  the  broken 
floor,  takes  a  rug  and  pulls  it  to  the  back  of  the 
trap  door. 

150.  HALLWAY  OF  PALACE.  Enrico  and  part  of 
his  soldiers  are  beating  down  the  door  of  the 
King's  chamber — the  rest  going  to  the  council 
chamber. 

151.  KING'S  BEDCHAMBER.  He  closes  the  trap 
just  as  the  door  breaks  open  and  Enrico  rushes 
in  with  his  soldiers.  Enrico  rushes  to  the  bed, 
sees  the  King  is  gone,  looks  angrily  all  about 
the  room,  points  toward  the  council  chamber 
and   they   all  rush   out. 

152.  COUNCIL  CHAMBER.  Soldiers  with  General 
looking  about  coming  in  from  door  leading  to 
other  rooms  where  they  have  found  nothing. 
Enrico  enters,  followed  by  soldiers,  discovers 
there  is  nobody  there.  He  meets  the  General 
and  they  are  much  puzzled  as  to  who  could  have 
tipped  off  the  King  and  let  him  escape.  The 
General  shrugs  his  shoulders,  says  if  they  have 
escaped,  Enrico  can  proclaim  himself  dictator. 
Enrico  goes  to  the  head  of  the  council  table,  the 
General  on  his  right  raising  his  sword  and 
shouting: 


104        BREAKING  INTO  THE  MOVIES 

SP-  "THE  KING  AND  COUNCIL  HAVING 
FLED,  SENOR  DE  CASTANET  PROCLAIMS 
HIMSELF  DICTATOR  OF  BUNKONIAl" 

Soldiers  wave  their  hats,  officers  their  swords, 
and  all  acclaim  him  dictator.  He  starts  to  make 
a  speech  and  says: 

SP:  "GENERAL.  OUR  FIRST  MOVE  MUST  BE 
TO  CAPTURE  AND  SHOOT  OUR  REN- 
EGADE KING  AND  HIS  COUNCIL." 

The  General  approves  and  calls  an  officer  and 
tells  him  to  take  a  troop  and  go  after  the  King. 
Officer  leaves. 

153.  HALLWAY  OF  PALACE.  Officer  comes  in, 
gets  together  his  men,  and  beats  it. 

154.  OLD  STONE  STAIRWAY  WITH  HEAVY 
WOODEN  DOOR  AT  THE  TOP.  Roland, 
Tom,  King  and  four   Councilors   stumble  up  the 

155.  HALLWAY  OF  EL  JUGGO  PRISON  WITH 
HEAVY  WOODEN  DOORS  AT  BACK.  Guard 
is  sitting  there  half  asleep.  He  arouses  a  little 
bit. 

156.  OLD  STONE  STAIRWAY  WITH  HEAVY 
WOODEN  DOOR  (same  as  158).  Roland  still 
beating  on  the  door. 

157.  HALLWAY  OF  JAIL.  The  guard,  amazed  at 
hearing  the  noise  outside  this  door,  gets  up,  un- 
locks the  big  lock  and  opens  the  door.  Roland 
rushes  in  with  the  King  on  his  arm,  followed 
by  the  four  Councilors,  Tom  carrying  one.  The 
guard  is  dumbfounded  at  seeing  all  these  notables 
coming  through  the  tunnel  and  asks  what  the 
trouble  is.  Roland  tells  him  there  is  a  revolution. 
He  looks  closely  at  the  King,  realizes  who  it  is, 
drops  on  his  knees  and  kisses  the  King's  hand. 
Roland  pulls  him  up  to  his  feet  and  says: 

SP:  "I  WANT  YOU  TO  LOCK  THIS  WHOLE 
GANG  UP  UNTIL  I  CAN  GET  HELP!" 

The   guard  looks   at   Roland  then  at  the  King 
and   says: 
SP:         "LOCK  UP  MY  KING— NEVER!" 

He  then  kneels  down  and  kisses  the  king's 
hand.  Roland  again  pulls  him  to  his  feet,  takes 
him   aside    and    gives    him    a    couple    of   pesetas. 


RED  HOT  ROMANCE  105 

The  guard  says,  "Sure,  that's  all  right,"  grabs 
the  King  and  hustles  him  and  others  down  cor- 
ridor, Tom.  carrying  his  councilor.  Roland  tells 
Tom  to  stay  with  them.  Tom  follows  them  down 
the  corridor  and  Roland  beats  it  out  of  the  front 
of  the  jail. 

158.  HALLWAY  IN  PALACE.  Countess  and  Major 
enter,  followed  bj'  Conwell,  Rosalie  and  guards. 
They  walk  down  the  hall  and  into  the  Council 
Chamber. 

159.  COUNCIL  CHAMBER.  Enrico  at  the  head  of 
the  table,  the  General  on  his  right  (Councilors' 
liquor  still  on  table).  Several  other  officers  at 
the  table  and  a  number  of  soldiers  standing 
about.  Countess  enters  with  Colonel,  Conwell, 
Rosalie  and  guards.  Countess  is  escorted  by 
Colonel  to  Enrico,  who  kisses  her  hand  and  steps 
over  to  Rosalie,  who  is  with  Conwell.  She  is 
terribly  frightened  but  Enrico  leers  at  her  and 
tells  her  she  has  nothing  to  fear.  Then  turns  to 
the  party  and  says: 

SP:         "LET  US  DRINK  TO  OUR  LITTLE  BRIDE." 
They  all  take  glasses.     Conwell  raises  glass  to 
Rosalie  and   says: 
SP:         'TO-MORROW  AT  TEN." 

They  all  drink  to  Rosalie,  who  stands  shivering 
pitifully.      (Quick  fade  out.) 
T:  TOO   LATE. 

160.  EXTERIOR  CONSULATE.  Roland  runs  in 
and  rushes  in  the  Consulate. 

161.  COLONEL'S  ROOM  IN  CONSULATE— Old 
mammy  lying  unconscious  where  Conwell  had 
thrown  her.  Roland  rushes  in,  is  alarmed  at 
seeing  the  girl  gone.  He  goes  to  mammy,  raises 
her  up,  shakes  her,  rubs  her  hands  and  slaps  them, 
trying  to   bring   her   to. 

162.  STREET.     Tom  runs  through  desperately. 

163.  COLONEL'S  ROOM  IN  CONSULATE.  Ro- 
land is  giving  mammy  a  drink  of  water.  She 
opens  her  eyes  and  slowly  comes  to.  He  puts 
her  in  a  chair  and  asks  her  what  has  happened. 
She  pulls  herself  together  and  says  that  Con- 
well   was    there    with    soldiers — says: 

SP:         "THEY  TOOK  HER  TO   THE   KING'S  PAL- 


106        BREAKING  INTO  THE  MOVIES 

ACE!     THEY  ARE  GOING  TO  MAKE  HER 
MARRY  CONWELL  IN  THE  MORNING!" 

Roland  shows  his  alarm  and  anger,  is  stumped 
for  a  moment.  The  old  mammy  begs  him  to  save 
her  girl.  Roland  thinks  for  a  minute  what  is  best 
to   do. 

164.  FRONT  OF  CONSULATE.  Tom  runs  in  and 
rushes  into  the  house. 

165.  COLONEL'S  ROOM  IN  CONSULATE.  Ro- 
land is  still  talking  to  old  mammy,  who  is  describ- 
ing what  happened.  Tom  rushes  in  from  Con- 
well's  room,  rushes  to  Roland  and  all  out  of 
breath  points  hand  and  says: 

SP:  "THE  REVOLUTIONISTS  PAID  THE  JAIL 
GUARD  TEN  PEZITS  AND  HE  TURNED 
OVER  THE  KING  AND  HIS  WHOLE  GANG 
TO  THEM!" 

Roland  is  in  despair  at  this  news.  Torn  still 
panting,  says: 

SP:  "THEY    ARE    GOING    TO     SHOOT    THEM 

ALL  IN  THE  MORNING!" 

Roland  is  utterly  flabbergasted  at  this,  looks 
bewildered  at  Tom  and  the  old  mammy  and 
finally  says  to  Tom  that  they  have  Rosalie  in 
the  palace  and  are  going  to  make  her  marry 
Conwell.  Tom  is  open  mouthed  at  this  news. 
At  length    Roland   says: 

SP:  "THERE'S  ONLY  ONE  CHANCE  —  WE 
MUST  GO  TO  PORTO  PUNKO  AND  GET 
THE  MARINES!" 

Tom  and  the  old  mammy  are  very  much  inter- 
ested in  this  and  urge  him  to  try  it  and  Roland 
asks  mammy  if  she  is  all  right.  She  says  she 
is  and  tells  them  to  go  on.  Tom  and  Roland 
beat  it  out  toward  the  front.  She  looks  after 
them. 

166.  FRONT  OF  CONSULATE.  Roland  and  Tom 
come  out  and  rush  down  the  street  toward  the 
station. 

167.  DUNGEON  UNDER  PALACE.  Squad  of 
soldiers  bring  in  the  King  and  four  Councilors. 
Tom's  Councilor  is  being  carried.  They  chuck 
them  in  the  cells  and  go  out.  Col.  Bird  looking 
out  of   adjoining  cell   and   demanding   that  he   be 


RED  HOT  ROMANCE  107 

released.     The  soldiers  spit  at  him  and  go  out. 

168.  THE  R.  R.  STATION— Roland  and  Tom  run  in 
and  quickly  enter  the  station. 

169.  INTERIOR  R.  R.  STATION.  Roland  and  Tom 
rush  in.  Roland  asks  the  station  master  when 
the  next  train  goes  to  Porto  Punko.  Station 
master  laughs  sardonically  and   replies: 

SP:  "NO  TRAINS  TO  PORTO  PUNKO  TO- 
NIGHT! THE  REVOLUTION  LEADERS 
HAVE  GIVEN  ORDERS  THAT  NO  ONE 
SHALL  LEAVE  TOWN!" 

He  laughs  again  at  Tom  and  Roland.  Roland 
looks  at  Tom  in  alarm  then  asks  the  station  master 
if  he  is  sure.  Station  master  says  of  course  he's 
sure.  Roland  steps  out  of  back  door.  Tom  starts 
an  altercation  with  the  station  master,  telling  him 
he  is   too   fresh,   etc. 

170.  EXTERIOR  BACK  OF  STATION.  Roland 
comes  out  and  looks  around  in  desperation.  Sees 
native  riding  by  on  an  old  bony  horse,  runs  to  him 
and  tries  to  hire  horse. 

171.  INTERIOR  R.  R.  STATION.  Tom  and  station 
master's  argument  is  getting  warmer.  They  are 
threatening   each   other   violently. 

172.  EXTERIOR  FRONT  R.  R.  STATION.  Two 
soldiers  (officers  with  revolvers)  ride  up  on  hand 
car,  get  off  and  run  into  station. 

173.  INTERIOR  R.  R.  STATION.  Tom  is  pounding 
station  master's  head  on  counter  as  two  officers 
enter.  They  see  him,  draw  their  revolvers  and 
shout,  "Throw  up  your  hands."  Tom  stops 
thumping  station  master  and  throws  up  his  hands. 
They  make  him  turn  toward  front  door  and  while 
one  covers  him  the  other  talks  excitedly  to  sta- 
tion master. 

174.  EXTERIOR  BACK  OF  R.  R.  STATION.  Ro- 
land trying  to  bribe  native  to  give  him  horse,  but 
native  refuses  and  rides  off.  Roland  turns  and 
looks  toward  station  and  sees — 

175.  INTERIOR  R.  R.  STATION.  One  of  officers 
covering  Tom  whose  hands  are  up,  the  other 
talking  to   station  master. 

176.  EXTERIOR  BACK  OF  R.  R.  STATION.  Ro- 
land, alarmed,   runs    to   station. 


108        BREAKING  INTO  THE  MOVIES 

177.  INTERIOR  R.  R.  STATION.  Officer  finishes 
his  talk  with  station  master,  covers  Tom  also  and 
they  start  to  march  him  toward  front  door.  Ro- 
land rushes  in  and  fairly  catapults  himself  on 
the  two  officers,  knocking  them  down.  Then  he 
and  Tom  rush  out  front  door  jumping  over 
officers. 

178.  EXTERIOR  FRONT  OF  R.  R.  STATION. 
Tom  and  Roland  rush  out  of  station  and  start 
down  road. 

179.  INTERIOR  R.  R.  STATION.  Two  officers 
scramble  to  their  feet  and  rush  out  front  door, 
followed  by  station  master. 

180.  EXTERIOR  FRONT  OF  R.  R.  STATION. 
Roland  and  Tom  running  down  road.  Two  offi- 
cers rush  out,  see  them  and  both  fire  at  them. 
Roland  falls  and  Tom  stops  to  help  him.  The 
two  officers  run  up  to  them  followed  by  station 
master.  They  stick  Tom  up  again  and  jerk  Ro- 
land to  his  feet.  Roland  loses  his  hat  and  puts 
his  hand  to  his  head.  He  has  only  a  scalp  wound. 
Two  common  soldiers  run  in  from  opposite  direc- 
tion— attracted  by  shots.  One  of  the  officers  says 
to    them: 

SP:  "TAKE  THEM  TO  THE  PALACE  DUNGEON 
AND  LOCK  THEM  UP." 

The    two    soldiers    start    off    with    Roland    and 
Tom.     The    officer    says,    "wait    a    minute" — they 
stop.     He    speaks    to   the   other   officer   who   nods 
his  head.     The  first  officer  then  says  to  Tom: 
SP:         "YOU   COME  WITH   US." 

He   tells   the   two   soldiers   to   take    Roland    off, 
which  they  do.    The  two  officers  then  march  Tom 
off  to  the  hand   car,  followed  by  station   master. 
Arrived   at    the    hand    car    one    of    them    says    to 
Tom: 
SP:         "GET  ON  THERE  AND  PUMP  THAT  CAR." 
Tom  and  two  officers  get  on  hand  car.     Officers 
cover    Tom    with    their    revolvers.      The    station 
master  says: 
SP:         "WHERE  ARE  YOU   GOING?" 

One  of  the  officers  turns  to  him  and  says: 
SP:         "TO    PORTO    PUNKO." 

At  this  Tom's  face  lights  up  and  he  begins  to 


RED  HOT  ROMANCE  109 

pump  like  mad  and  the  hand  car  goes  down  the 

track    in    opposite    direction    to    one    of    train    in 

scene.     Station   master   waves   his   hand  to   them 

and   exits   to   station.     (Fade  out.) 

NEXT  MORNING. 

THE  FATAL  HOUR  APPROACHES. 

181.  PLAZA— FRONT  OF  PALACE.  Soldiers  are 
lined  up  in  front  of  palace.  Populace  in  native 
costumes  are  running  about  talking  excitedly  and 
reading  placards  v/hich  are  posted  all  about. 

INSERT— PLACARD   (in  fake  language). 
PROKLAMATIONIZ 
BINGUS  DE  SPOLIO  KAYITZ!     ETC. 
DISSOLVE  INTO  ENGLISH  WHICH  READS: 

PROCLAMATION 
EX  REX  CARAMBA  AND  HIS  COUNCIL 
HAVE  DESERTED  THEIR  PEOPLE.  EN- 
RICO DE  CASTANET  HAS  BEEN  PRO- 
CLAIMED DICTATOR  BY  UNANIMOUS 
VOTE  OF  THE  ARMY.  CARAMBA  AND 
HIS  COUNCIL  WILL  BE  SHOT  AT  TEN. 
ALL  TAXES  WILL  BE  RAISED  TWENTY 
PER    CENT    AT    TEN-THIRTY. 

The  people  are  frightened  at  this  and  call  others 
to  read. 

182.  COURTYARD  BACK  OF  PALACE.  Officer 
enters  from  palace  with  sixteen  soldiers.  He 
picks  out  ten  for  a  firing  squad.  He  goes  to  the 
wall  and  paces  off  a  distance,  then  lines  up  his 
firing  squad.  He  then  takes  the  other  six  and 
goes  back  into  the  palace. 

183.  COUNCIL  ROOM.  Enrico  enters  with  Magis- 
trate carrying  a  book.  Enrico  leads  him  across 
the  room  and  says: 

SP:         "THE    WEDDING    TAKES    PLACE    HERE!" 
The     Magistrate     says     "all     right"     and     gets 
ready. 

184.  DUNGEONS  UNDER  PALACE.  Conwell  and 
guards  with  guns  enter  and  open  the  door  of 
cell  and  drag  Roland  out  leaving  old  Colonel  in. 
They  lock  the  door.  Roland  reaches  through 
the  bars  and  grasps  Bird's  hand,  saying  "Good- 
by."  They  take  out  Roland,  who  has  a  hand- 
kerchief tied  around  his  head.     March  out.     Ro- 


110        BREAKING  INTO  THE  MOVIES 

land  then  straightens  up  and  marches  out  like  a 
Sidney  Carton. 

185.  COUNCIL  ROOM.'  Enrico  and  Magistrate  are 
■waiting  (no  guns  on  anybody  in  this  scene). 
Countess  enters  with  Rosalie  who  is  terrified  and 
completely  cowed.  Enrico  goes  to  her,  pinches 
her  cheek  and  says: 

SP:         "WELL,     HAVE    YOU    MADE    UP    YOUR 

MIND  TO   MARRY  CONWELL?" 

She    weakly    shakes    her    head    and    says    she 

doesn't   know    what    to    do.      Enrico    smiles    and 

says: 
SP:         "SO  YOU'D  RATHER  SEE  YOUR  FATHER 

KILLED,  WOULD  YOU?" 

She  miserably  shakes  her  head  and  says  "No." 

Enrico    pats    her    on    the     shoulder    and     says: 

"That's   a   sensible   little   girl." 

186.  HALL  OF  PALACE.  Roland,  with  two  guards 
and  Conwell,  comes  up  the  stairs  and  they  march 
to  the  door  of  council  room  and  stop.  ConwcU 
smiles  at  Roland  and  says: 

SP:  "I  DID  YOU  A  GOOD  TURN,  NOW  YOU 
ARE  GOING  TO  DO  ME  ONE." 

Roland  looks  at  him  suspiciously  and  Conwell 
still  smiling,  says: 

SP:  "YOU'RE  GOING  TO  BE  BEST  MAN  AT  MY 
WEDDING." 

He  then  throws  the  door  wide  open  and  indi- 
cates the  wedding  party  on  the  opposite  side  of 
the  room,  with  a  flourish.  Roland  looks  in  as- 
tounded and  horrified. 

187.  COUNCIL  ROOM.  Enrico,  Magistrate,  Coun- 
tess and  Rosalie  standing  opposite  door.  They 
all  look  at  doorway  and  see  Conwell  and  Roland. 
Rosalie  stands  transfixed  with  her  eyes  wide 
open. 

188.  HALL  IN  PALACE.  Roland  stands  transfixed, 
looking  at  Rosalie.  Conwell  invites  him  in  with 
a  sinister  smile  and  enters  first,  followed  by  Ro- 
land, who  is  followed  by  the  two  guards. 

189.  COUNCIL  ROOAI.  Conwell  enters,  followed  by 
Roland  and  two  guards.  Conwell  crosses  to 
Rosalie  but  Roland  stops  near  door,  with  guards 
back  of  him  almost  in   doorway.     Conwell   takes 


RED  HOT  ROMANCE  111 

Rosalie's  hand,  tells  her  Roland  is  to  be  their 
best  man  and,  looking  tauntingly  at  Roland,  he 
leans  over  and  kisses  her.  This  infuriates  Ro- 
land so  he  cannot  contain  himself.  He  suddenly 
whirls,  pushes  the  two  guards  in  the  face.  They 
fall  through  the  door  out  into  the  hall,  Roland 
quickly   closes   the   door. 

190.  HALL  IN  PALACE.  The  two  guards  fall 
through  the  doorway,  sprawling  on  the  floor. 

191.  COUNCIL  ROOM.  Roland  closes  the  door  and 
locks  it,  turns  and  rushes  upon  the  astonished 
Conwell.  Then  follows  a  general  mixup.  Roland 
having  to  fight  Conwell,  Enrico  and  possibly 
the  Magistrate — or  the  Magistrate  might  be  an 
old  guy  who  beats  it  out  the  window  as  soon 
as  the  fight  begins.  Rosalie  tries  to  help  by 
picking  up  a  vase  or  some  such  object  and  hitting 
Conwell  or  Enrico,  but  the  Countess  stops  her 
and  Rosalie  keeps  the  Countess  busy  by  strug- 
gling with  all  her  might.  Conwell  must  be  put 
out  completely  and  Roland  conquers  Enrico  and 
the  Magistrate  and  would  be  a  complete  winner 
but  for  the  Countess.  While  she  is  struggling 
with  Rosalie  and  the  fight  is  going  on,  the 
guards  in  the  hall  struggle  to  their  feet  and  begin 
banging  on  the  door.  The  Countess  hears  this 
and  her  object  is  to  get  the  door  open.  She  is 
prevented  for  some  time  by  Rosalie  but  just  as 
Roland  has  finished  off  Conwell  and  the  Magis- 
trate and  has  Enrico  down  and  practically  out, 
the  Countess  manages  to  get  the  door  open  and 
let  in  the  two  guards.  They  cover  Roland  and 
he  rises  and  surrenders.  Conwell  and  Enrico  are 
pretty  far  gone  but  they  manage  to  get  up  and 
Enrico  says  to  the  guards: 

SP:  "TAKE  HIM  TO  THE  COURTYARD  AND 
SHOOT   HIM!" 

The  guards  rush  Roland  out — Rosalie  collapses. 

During  this  fight  we  see  a  long  shot  of  Tom 
with  an  American  flag  and  the  marines  coming 
down    the    street. 

A  man  running  to  a  group  of  the  populace  and 
saying:  "The  Americans  are  coming!"  The 
whole   of    this    group    then    run   out    toward    the 


112        BREAKING  INTO  THE  MOVIES 

palace.  This  group  runs  to  the  crowd  in  front 
of  the  palace  and  yell:  "The  Americans  are 
coming!"  The  crowd  falls  back  to  the  other 
side  of  the  Plaza  and  the  soldiers  guarding  the 
palace  look  anxiously  up  and  down. 

Tom  with  his  marines  rushes  into  the  plaza. 
The  crowd  falls  back  and  the  soldier  guards  beat 
it  hot  foot.  Part  of  the  marines  rush  into  the 
palace,  led  by  Tom.  The  man  with  the  flag  and 
the  rest  of  them  stop  outside  and  guard  the 
palace. 

Also,  during  this  fight  the  officer  and  his  guard 
of  six  men  take  the  King  and  Councilors  out 
of  their  cells  and  lead  them  off  toward  the  court- 
yard, line  them  up  against  the  wall,  tie  their 
hands  behind  them,  blindfold  each  one  and  are 
just  about  to  give  the  order  to  shoot  when  Tom 
rushes  into  the  courtyard  with  his  marines,  who 
chase  the  soldiers  off  and  Tom  picks  up  the 
King  and  carries  him  and  shoos  them  all  before 
him  into  the  palace,  having  jerked  off  their  blind- 
folds. 

192.  HALLWAY  OF  PALACE.  Just  as  the  two 
guards  bring  Roland  out  of  the  Council  Room  into 
the  hall  and  start  toward  the  stairs,  Tom  runs  in  at 
front  with  his  marines.  The  guards,  seeing  them, 
drop  Roland  and  beat  it  out  the  back  window. 
Roland  greets  Tom  ecstatically,  looks  at  his 
watch,  sees  that  it  is  one-half  minute  to  ten  and 
says: 

SP:  "TRY  AND  SAVE  THE  KING  AND  COUN- 
CIL!" 

Tom  wants  to  know  where  they  are  and  Roland 
points  down  stairs  and  back.  Roland  tells  twenty 
of  the  marines  to  come  with  him  and  the  rest 
run  down  stairs  with  Tom.  Roland  leads  his 
little  bunch  into  the  council  room. 

193.  COUNCIL  ROOM.  Countess  is  holding  up  Ro- 
salie, Conwell  leaning  against  the  wall  side  of 
her.  Magistrate  is  starting  marriage  service. 
Enrico  is  sitting  on  the  table  holding  his  head 
and  watching  the  ceremony.  The  door  bursts 
open  and  in  rushes  Roland  with  six  marines.  He 
rushes    over    and    grasps    Rosalie    and    tells    the 


RED  HOT  ROMANCE  113 

marines  to  cover  all   the  others,   which  they  do. 

194.  COURTYARD  OF  PALACE.  Officers  just  fin- 
ishing blindfolding  King  and  Councilors.  They 
are  all  lined  up  to  be  shot.  Firing  squad  is  all 
ready — sixteen  in  all,  now.  Officer  leaves  King 
and  Councilors  and  takes  place  at  end  of  firing 
squad.  He  is  just  about  to  raise  his  sword  when 
Tom  runs  in  from  the  Palace,  lets  out  a  yell, 
and  followed  by  his  twenty  marines  rushes  in. 
The  soldiers  seeing  them,  run  like  mad,  chased 
by  the  marines.  Tom  quickly  jerks  off  blindfolds 
and  shoos  the  whole  bunch — King  and  Councilors 
— into    the    palace. 

195.  COUNCIL  ROOM.  Colonel  Bird  and  two  ma- 
rines run  in.  Rosalie  rushes  to  her  father's  arms 
and  Roland  tells  Bird  to  look  after  her  and  to 
go  into  the  hall,  which  they  do.  He  tells  two 
of  the  marines  to  guard  Conwell  and  the  Countess 
and  Magistrate.  He  then  grabs  Enrico,  tells  the 
other  six  marines  to  follow,  and  drags  Enrico 
out  into  the  hall,  followed  by  six  marines. 

196.  HALLWAY  IN  PALACE.  Colonel  Bird  and 
Rosalie  are  waiting.  Roland  drags  Enrico  out, 
followed  by  six  marines.  They  start  toward  the 
front.  At  this  moment  the  King  and  Council 
come  up  the  stairs  headed  by  Tom.  Roland  grabs 
the  King  in  his  other  hand,  calls  Tom  and  tells 
him  to  bring  the  King  along;  hands  him  over  to 
Tom.  Tells  the  marines  to  herd  along  the 
Council,  and  they  all  go  toward  front  of  hall. 

197.  FRONT  OF  THE  PALACE.  People  waiting. 
American  soldiers  there.  Roland  and  Tom  drag 
the  King  and  Enrico  out  on  the  porch,  followed 
by  Bird  and  Marines.  The  people  become  silent, 
not  knowing  what  has   happened. 

CLOSE  UP  OF  ROLAND  STARTING  SPEECH.  He 
raises  his  hand  while  Tom  holds  the  King.  He 
points   at  the   King,  then  turns  and   says: 

SP:  "MY  FRIENDS,  FOR  TEN  YEARS  YOUR 
BEAUTIFUL  COUNTRY  HAS  BEEN  RULED 
BY  THIS  COMIC  OPERA  KING.  WHO  HAS 
NOT  DRAWN  A  SOBER  BREATH  SINCE 
HE  ASCENDED  THE  THRONE." 

Tom    holds    up    the    King,    to    whom    Roland 


114        BREAKING  INTO  THE  MOVIES 

points — the     King     weakly    protesting.       Roland 
turns  front  and  speaks  again,  pointing  at  Enrico: 

SP:  "LAST  NIGHT  THE  KING  WAS  DE- 
THRONED BY  THE  MOST  CORRUPT  AND 
CONTEMPTIBLE  GRAFTER  THE  COUN- 
TRY HAS  EVER  KNOWN— ENRICO  DE 
CASTANET!" 

He  points  at  Enrico,  who  grits  his  teeth  and 
wants  to  pounce  on  Roland,  but  is  restrained 
by  guns  of  marines  at  his  back.  Roland  looks 
triumphantly    at    Enrico,    then    front,    and    says: 

SP:  'THE  FIRST  ACT  OF  THIS  TYRANT,  ON 
ASSUMING  POWER,  WAS  TO  RAISE  THE 
ALREADY    EXORBITANT   TAXES  1" 

The  people  nod  their  heads  "yes"  and  shake 
their  fists  at  Enrico.  Roland  points  to  Enrico 
and  says,  "Look  at  him."  He  then  turns  to  the 
King  and  says  "Look  at  him."  Then  he  turns 
to  the  people  and  says: 

SP:        "IS   EITHER   OF  THESE   WRETCHES   FIT 
TO    RULE   THIS    BEAUTIFUL    COUNTRY?" 
The  people  shake  their  heads  yelling  "No,  no," 
and  to-helling   both  the   King  and   Enrico. 

CLOSE  UP  OF  ROLAND  listening  to  this  demonstra- 
tion, turning  first  to  the  King  and  then  to  Enrico, 
as  if  to  say  "Ah,  you  see,"  and  then  front  again 
and  says: 

SP:  "IN  AMERICA  WE  CHOOSE  OUR  OWN 
RULERS  AND  DETERMINE  OURSELVES 
WHAT  OUR  TAXES  ARE  TO  BE." 

LONG  SHOT  OF  THE  CROWD— Hearing  this,  turning 
to  each  other  and  expressing  their  approval  of 
the  idea,  one  or  two  yelling  out  exclamations  of 
approval. 

CLOSE  UP  OF  ROLAND— Smiling,  looking  again  at 
the  men  on  his  right  and  left  and  again  speaking 
front: 

SP:  "WHY  NOT  CHANGE  THIS  GOVERNMENT 
INTO  A  DEMOCRACY  LIKE  AMERICA 
AND  ALL  THE  CIVILIZED  COUNTRIES 
OF  THE  WORLD?" 

LONG  SHOT  OF  THE  CROWD,  yelling  approval,  wav- 
ing their  hats  and  hands  and   (fade  out). 

T:  AND   SO   A   NEW   REPUBLIC   WAS    BORN. 


RED  HOT  ROMANCE  115 

THEY  TRIED  TO  MAKE  ROLAND  PRESI- 
DENT, BUT  THERE  WAS  ONLY  ONE  JOB 
HE  WANTED. 

198.  FADE  IN  JUDGE'S  COURT.  Roland  is  sitting 
on  the  bench  all  dolled  up  in  a  judge's  rig.  Be- 
side him  stands  Tom  in  a  policeman's  uniform. 
He  indicates  to  Tom  to  bring  in  the  prisoners. 
Tom  tells  an   officer  to   open   the   door. 

CLOSE  UP  OF  DOOR  AT  SIDE  OF  ROOM.    Officer 

opens    door    and    the    King   and    four    Councilors 

and    Enrico    file    past    the    camera   going   to   the 

front    of   the   Judge's    bench. 
LONG   SHOT   OF    COURTROOM,  showing  prisoners, 

Judge  and  Tom. 
CLOSE   UP   OF  ROLAND   looking  over  the  prisoners 

and  saying: 
SP:         "YOU    ARE    ALL    SENTENCED    TO    ONE 

YEAR  IN  PRISON— THIS   COUNTRY  MUST 

BE    MADE    SAFE    FOR   DEMOCRACY    AND 

INSURANCE." 

The  prisoners  all  look  at  each  other  in  dismay. 

Tom   steps   down,   starts   to  jerk   Enrico   roughly 

toward    the    door.      Roland    raises   his    hand   and 

speaks: 
SP:         "TREAT   THEM   GENTLY,    CHIEF.     THEIR 

POLICIES    DON'T    EXPIRE    FOR    ELEVEN 

MONTHS!" 

Then  Tom  takes   them  very  gently  and   leads 

them  out  of  the  room.     As  they  go  out,  Roland 

says: 
SP:         "WE'LL   CALL  THAT  A   DAY.     COURT   IS 

ADJOURNED!" 

He  leaves  by  door  at  back. 

199.  GARDEN.  Rosalie  waiting.  Roland  comes  to 
her.     (Fade  out.) 


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